One of Those Girls
by InAnotherLife11
Summary: Nox and her friends are sentenced to eighteen months at Camp Green Lake after trying to escape the California Detention Ward for Troubled Girls. What will happen when they meet the boys from D-Tent? Full summary inside!
1. Chapter One

Before begin, I will say this once and never again during this story…

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Holes or anything you recognize from the book/movie. I only own my three female characters (Nox, Ash, and Mace) and I would appreciate it if no one tried to steal them.**

**Beginning Announcement: **So, this is my second story posted on FF and I'm still not sure how it's going to end, but I think I have a pretty solid beginning so far, so we'll see how it goes. If you've read and kept up with my other story _Shade: It's What Everybody Wants_ and actually read my announcements at the beginning and end of the latest chapter, you will remember that I explained a little about the other stories I have been writing, if you didn't figure it out already, this is the one of me and my friends just very warped. I'm not sure if I will finish this story, but I figured I'd give it a shot and let you decide if it's worth continuing.

Now, I normally do not give information about the characters beforehand, but this time I have decided to make an exception just to give you a small amount of information about my new characters before you begin. All other information will be given throughout the story.

**Background Check on**** the Girls:**

_(Pictures have already been added to the bottom of my profile if anyone would like to see the celebrities I have chosen to portray them.)_

Noelle Taylor (Nox) – One of those girls who are intelligent and talented in more ways than one, but she's got a few secrets concerning her past that she doesn't want anyone to know.

Alyce Lane (Ash) – One of those girls who are audaciously loud and fierce, but only to hide the fact that she's secretly afraid of getting hurt.

Mallory Keats (Mace) – One of those girls who have some serious anger issues, but is the best companion to have because nothing will stop her from defending the people she loves most.

**Full Summary:** Nox and her friends are sentenced to eighteen months at Camp Green Lake after trying to escape the California Detention Ward for Troubled Girls. These girls act first and deal with the consequences later. Instead of being ashamed of themselves, they're quite proud. But what will happen when they meet the boys from D-Tent?

**WARNING:** I'll try to keep it from happening, but my added characters may be a little Mary-Sueish. If that bothers you, I'm sorry, but I only started this to take a break from _Shade_ by writing another fun fanfiction.

Okay! Now, I've said way too much! Let's get on with it already!

**Chapter One**

**One Creep and One Fool**

"Wake up, Nox! You've been sleeping the whole way! And I'm _bored_!" I woke to Ash yelling at me after she had managed to kick me a couple times.

"Okay, okay! I'm awake! Now please stop kicking me!" I yelled back irritably.

I reluctantly opened my eyes to see Ash, in the seat across from me, positioned awkwardly with her back against both the side of the bus and her seat so that she could kick me awake. I watched as she carefully maneuvered herself back into a regular sitting position without falling off the seat. Her wrists were cuffed together in front of her, just like mine were, and that made it difficult to reposition ourselves without losing our balance.

"Are we there yet?" I yawned as I tried to sit up more properly, rubbing the sleep dirt out of my eyes. The bus was ridiculously hot and the hard leather seats were extremely uncomfortable.

"I think we just might be," Mace answered from the seat in front of me as she turned to face me. "Look outside!"

Ash and I both looked out of our own windows to see a barren desert and what looked like a million giant holes all over the place.

"What the fuck?" I asked in shock. "What are all the holes for?"

"I think that's what we're going to be doing here, Nox," Mace said, also looking a bit bewildered as she stared out the window.

"What do you mean?" I asked, curiously.

"I mean, I think we're going be digging those holes," Mace answered, matter-of-factly.

"_Fuck…"_ I trailed off, hitting my head on the window. "This is gonna suck so much," I whined as I continued to bang my head on the glass. "The judge said this place would help us build character, not make us dig giant holes!" I exclaimed, exasperated.

"Nox, stop that. It can't be that bad…" Ash started, and then she reconsidered her choice of words. "Well, maybe after a while it won't be so bad."

"We should have never tried to escape…" I stated plainly, currently in the mood to complain.

"Well, if I had known we would have ended up here, I wouldn't have asked you to," Mace retorted. "I wouldn't have even considered it."

"How did you talk us into escaping anyway? It feels like forever ago, I don't even remember." Ash questioned, her face looking perplexed as she tried to grasp some sort of memory.

"It wasn't hard. You wanted to get out so you could see Liam and Nox wanted to get out so she could cuss out Bane for dumping her via phone call and then hanging up on her before she had a chance to react," Mace replied casually.

"Oh, right," Ash said, suddenly remembering. "I'm so glad Liam is nothing like Bane. He would never dump me like that."

I snorted, "Just you wait, Ash. You think your boy is going to stick around when he finds out you got sent to the bottom of _Texas_ for escaping after you _promised_ him you'd be good. He's going off to college next month and then to medical school! He's not going to want a juvenile delinquent for a girlfriend, especially not one who just keeps making trouble for herself. He's going to want to check out the girls in his coed dormitory and his classes… you know, the ones who are actually his age and who have managed to get into a good school and have _never been arrested_!"

"Nox, don't be so harsh," Mace stopped me, noticing the sad look in Ash's eyes.

Ash just shook her head, "He's not like that." Her words were quiet, but looking at Mace, I knew that she had heard her, too. We both knew that I was probably right about Liam, but when it happens, the last thing either of us would ever do is say, "I told you so."

All of a sudden, the bus stopped.

"Hey, I think we're here!" Mace exclaimed, excitedly. "Ugh… Finally! This bus is so stuffy that if it weren't for our windows being put down a crack, we probably would have suffocated!"

I looked out the windows to see a couple shabby old buildings and people standing around, all of them wearing orange. "Ugh, I hate orange," I muttered to myself, knowing it had never been my color.

The bus driver turned off the ignition and the guard who had been watching us the whole time quickly ushered us off of the bus.

He stood there with his rifle at the ready, next to the bus driver, as the three of us quickly got out of our seats, with our backpacks on, and Ash and I with our guitar cases, as we tried not to lose our balance due to the stupid handcuffs, and walked off the bus and out into the sun.

"Damn, I wish I'd worn my sunglasses," I said, squinting as the sunlight blinded me and my friends.

"Seriously," Ash agreed, having already forgotten about my cruelty toward her with the arrival. "Ugh, and I thought California summers were hot, this place could probably be the equivalent of Hell!"

"Fresh meat!" Some random kid called out, trying to sound tough, soon after we had exited the bus.

"Whoa! They're girls!" Another added quickly.

"Way to point out the obvious," I muttered, annoyed, not even bothered to look around to see who had said it.

Mace nudged me in the arm, "Hey, remember where we are. This _is_ an all boys' camp."

"Yeah, well, _what_ the judge was thinking when he decided to send us _here_, I'll never understand," I stated just as the guard pushed me in the back, with the butt of his shotgun, toward the first building.

I whipped my head around and growled at him, before proceeding into the ugly building with my two best friends behind me.

Inside, there was a ruddy-faced man with beady eyes, sideburns, a rather large beer belly and a cowboy hat. He had his feet up on the desk and a burlap bag full of sunflowers seeds sat next to him. He looked up at us as we came in, a glower overtaking his facial expression.

"They're a dangerous bunch," the guard spoke out, conversationally, as he handed him our files, talking about us.

"Uncuff them," the ugly man said, ignoring him as he motioned toward our wrists.

The guard slowly removed the handcuffs, stepping back from us the moment he finished and quickly walked around us to leave, while the cowboy opened up our files on the desk.

"Sit," he said, curtly, not bothering to look up at us.

There was only one chair in front of the desk and all three of us jumped for it, Ash quickly winning the moment she pulled out her claws (or just dangerously long, naturally grown nails) and Mace and I stood on either side of her.

"Noelle Taylor, Alyce Lane, and Mallory Keats," he finally spoke, looking at each of us in turn as he called off our names.

We didn't bother to respond. It's not like our files didn't come with our mug shots paperclipped to them.

"My name is Mr. Sir and you will call me by my name when you speak to me, understand?" He stated, sternly.

I snorted quietly, but covered it with a cough. Mr. Sir? What kind of name was that? It was just too funny.

Mace glared at me and then replied sweetly, "Yes, Mr. Sir."

"Good," he said, glancing at Mace and then glaring at me for a moment. "Now, this ain't no Girl Scouts' camp you're at here, you will not be given any special treatment, got it?" He asked, eyeing me again.

"Yes, Mr. Sir," Mace repeated.

"Good, now follow me," Mr. Sir quickly stood up and headed out of the building, leading us toward the next one.

*

"Hey, guess what?" X-Ray said as his tent mates, Squid and Armpit, just returned from the showers.

"What?" Squid asked as he went over to his bed to put away his towel and work clothes.

"Those girls Mom told us about at the last meeting just arrived," X-Ray grinned. "And, man, you should have _seen_ them."

"So, they're hot?" Armpit questioned, lounging on his own cot.

"Oh, they're not just hot, they're _smokin'_ hot!" X-Ray announced, excited.

"You serious?" Squid asked, surprised.

X-Ray nodded, "Of course, I'm serious!"

"Yeah, but you haven't seen a hot girl in, like, a year, dude. How do we know we can trust your judgment?" Armpit argued.

"I know what I saw," X-Ray defended himself. "Just you wait." He then walked out of D-Tent, headed for the Wreck Room.

"You think he's right about them being hot?" Armpit asked, nodding toward Squid.

Squid just shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, but if he is, we'll be the luckiest guys here."

"Why's that?"

"Because Mom said that even though they will have their own tent, they'll be digging with us along with joining our meetings."

Armpit nodded, satisfied, "Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough whether or not they're hot if they're already here."

*

"Do you girls see any guard towers? Any electric fences?" Mr. Sir asked, gesturing to the area around us.

I was pretty sure we had all noticed that there was absolutely nothing stopping us from running, but Mace was the one to answer, "No, Mr. Sir." She was the best of us when it came to sucking up to adults.

"Exactly," he spoke excitedly. "If you wanna run, go ahead and run! I won't stop you! We got the only water source for a hundred miles. If you try to run, you'll be buzzard food by the end of the third day."

_Damn_, I thought.

"We're not going to run, Mr. Sir," Mace replied, she was trying to continue to sound sweet and innocent, but I could hear the strain this information had put in her tone of voice.

Then again, if we _had_ tried to run away again and _lived_, who knows where they would have put us after that. We were sent here for a reason. Escaping was out of the question when there was no water. Of course, I think the judge went a little over the top by sending us here. I mean, that was the first time any of us had tried to escape and it was obvious that we weren't exactly experts at it, so I don't know why he was so set on sending us here when we probably wouldn't have bothered trying again anyway.

The next room we entered had a bunch of shelves loaded with orange jumpsuits, boots, and other items.

"You will wear these while you are here," he said, handing each of us two orange jumpsuits, a pair of boots, a hat, and a pair of gloves. "One jumpsuit is for work, the other is for relaxation. Every three days you're work clothes will be washed and your relaxation clothes with become your work clothes." He then took a shovel and held it up to us, "You will dig a hole every day, five foot deep and five foot in diameter. Your shovel is your measuring stick." He put the shovel back.

We just stared at him, our stuff still in our hands.

"Well, why aren't you changing into your new clothes?" He asked, irritated.

Mace spoke up again this time, "Mr. Sir, we're underage and you're obviously not. It would be considered sexual harassment for us to change in front of you."

"Listen, girly, you are in a detention facility now and what might have been considered harassment out there isn't in here."

Obviously he had not bothered to read our files or else he would have known that this wasn't our first facility.

"We're not changing in front of you," I growled angrily, taking his attention off of her. The last thing I wanted right now was some old creep watching me or my girls take our clothes off.

But before Mr. Sir could respond, another man entered the building. This one was shorter, about our height; he wore a huge, ugly hat and had way too much sun screen caked on his nose. "Noelle, Alyce, and Mallory?"

"That's us," I answered, frowning skeptically at this new fool.

"Welcome to Camp Green Lake! I'm Mr. Pendanski and I'll be your counselor while you're here. Now, I just want you girls to know that you may have done some bad things but that does not make you a bad person. I respect each and every one of you," he spoke, looking at each of us in turn.

How many times did it take him before he could say all of that in one breath?

It was obvious by the fake smile on his face and the mocking tone of his voice that, even though he probably said that to everyone, he hadn't meant it in a long time. He thought we were criminals and we were here because we belonged here.

"Cut the bullshit already," Ash finally spoke out, also looking at this man disdainfully. Of course, she was still bored from before, because she was Ash… and Ash was almost always bored.

Pendanski stared at her for a moment in astonishment before going right back to his speech, "Now, it's talk like that, that got you here in the first place, Alyce, but I'm here to help you change so that you'll be fit to return to society when your time comes."

"Well, from what I understand," Ash started, stepping up and looking at this idiot straight in the eye, "it was my _actions_ that got me here in the first place, _not_ my speech, and my time is up in eighteen months whether you manage to change me or not."

From what we learned from a couple of the girls at the Ward (after we were re-detained, we were returned to the Ward to wait for the judge's final decision and, later, for Camp Green Lake to send its own proper mode of transportation), everyone who got sent to Camp Green Lake was there for eighteen months, no matter the crime. The Warden here wouldn't keep anyone for longer than that. But the truth of the matter is that even after a single month here (let alone a full year and a half), no one would want to get in trouble ever again, and if they did… they'd be screaming for juvy.

Pendanski faltered again; apparently none of the other delinquents have ever been so rude to him. "Follow me, girls," he said, unhappily, and led us back out into the sun.

He pointed to the two other buildings, "There's the Mess Hall and the Rec Room." Then he pointed to the showers, "The Warden has had two shower stalls installed for you so that you can shower in privacy."

"Thank God," I muttered as I looked over at the "showers." There were the boys' showers, which only went up to their waists. The girls' showers were probably tall enough so that nobody would be able to see even the top of our heads.

"Now, I want you to meet D-Tent. I'm their counselor, too. Now, don't worry, they are all very respectable boys and I'm sure they'll be willing to help you get settled here."

"Look, fool, just show us where _our_ tent is already and leave us the fuck alone," I yelled at him, stomping my foot in the dirt.

I was tired, I was hungry, and I was irritable. I didn't want to listen to this idiot talk for another minute.

Mr. Pendanski turned around to stare at me for a moment (probably surprised that it wasn't Ash telling him off this time) and then pointed at the second to last tent, "That's G-Tent; you'll be sleeping there. I'll just go round up some of the D-Tent boys and bring them to you in a couple minutes."

"You do that," I replied, smartly, as I headed for our tent with my girls in tow.

"G-Tent? How original," Ash commented.

"Seriously," I agreed as we entered the green canvas tent with a huge G at the top.

***

Well, I've already said enough so I'm not going to say anymore. PLEASE leave a review and let me know if you liked it or not! Xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	2. Chapter Two

**Beginning Announcement:** Well, I didn't get a lot of feedback on whether or not people liked the first chapter, but I suppose that's normal. It's good that I've managed to get 30 hits in the last three or four days though! Along with three faves and six alerts adding to the three reviews I received. The number of reviews don't really start adding up until there are more chapters to read anyway. So, here's the next chapter!

**Chapter Two**

**G-Tent Meets D-Tent**

Inside G-Tent there were three cots; two on the left and one on the right. Ash and Mace immediately went for the two on the left (Ash to the one closest to the entrance and Mace to the one closest to the back wall) as I went for the one on the right.

"So, what do you guys think?" I asked, putting my backpack on my bed.

"I think you're right," Ash admitted. "This place _is_ going to suck."

"Well, that's obvious," Mace retorted after lying down on her cot, her backpack and clothes discarded on the floor next to her bed.

I laid down my jumpsuits, hat, and gloves on my bed, while dropping my boots to the floor and shoving my guitar case underneath it, before picking up the crate next to my cot (in which I found and removed two clean towels and a dirty plastic jug that looked like it would hold about a gallon of water) and placing it on the bed as well.

"Well, we've certainly made a huge mistake trying to escape the Ward," I pointed out as I began emptying my backpack and putting some of the items into the crate.

"Would you _please_ stop saying that!?" Mace yelled, sitting up to yell at me and then falling back onto her pillow in frustration. "I'm sorry! Okay? I never meant to get us into this mess. I just wanted to escape that hellhole. I didn't know it would put us out here in the middle of the desert in _real_ hell!"

"I must say, as much as I hated the Ward, this place is going to be _far_ worse. I mean, we have to digholes_ every day!_ And that includes weekends!" Ash added as she began to unpack her own things.

Suddenly, we all quieted as we heard footsteps coming up the front steps and voices behind the tent flap. A second later, Pendanski walked in with five boys trailing behind him.

"Did we say you could come into our tent?" I growled angrily.

This time, Pendanski completely ignored my rudeness. "Girls," he started cheerily. "This is D-Tent. I want you to meet Rex, Alan, Theodore, Ricky, and Jose."

We stayed silent as we looked over the boys while Rex contradicted Pendanski, "Yo, my name is X-Ray. That's Squid, Armpit, Zigzag, and Magnet."

Well, at least nicknames were in style around here.

"And he's Mom," the boy who was called 'Squid' said, nodding toward Mr. Pendanski.

Pendanski rolled his eyes and smiled that annoyingly fake smile, "They all have their little nicknames, but I prefer to call them by the names their parents gave them; the names society will recognize them by."

He was so condescending and pompous, I could barf. I just wanted to punch him in the face and see how much of a big shot he'd be with a black eye.

"Yeah, whatever," X-Ray retorted, he had obviously heard this speech before.

I quickly looked to this X-Ray, surprised to see someone else here who just might agree with me that this man was a joke.

X-Ray was black with thick black-rimmed glasses and stood at about five foot eight. He had some nice arm muscles and a scowl on his face. I assumed he must be the leader.

Squid was taller, maybe six feet tall, with light brown hair and brown eyes. He had a toothpick in his mouth and a grey baseball cap covering his head.

Armpit was a big black boy, about the same height as X-Ray, and he could probably beat up all of them if he wanted to, but, then again, he didn't look like the brightest crayon in the box.

Zigzag was the tallest of them all, standing at maybe six foot two, with a giant crazy puff of curly dirty blond hair on top of his head that made him appear even taller.

Magnet was Mexican and stood at about five foot seven. He had a buzz cut and a happy grin on his face.

Each boy was dressed in the standard orange jumpsuit, whether it was worn correctly or tied around the waist. The only real difference was that X-Ray, Squid, and Armpit looked to be freshly showered, while Zigzag and Magnet were completely covered in dirt. I could only imagine how many times Zigzag would have to wash his hair every day in order to get the all of the dirt out of that giant puffy dirt-colored cloud on top of his head.

"Boys, this is Noelle, Alyce, and Mallory," Pendanski then introduced us as all five of the boys began to look us over.

I only stood at five foot five. I had semi-dark brown hair going all the way down past my shoulders in wavy curls, but right now I had it up in a large dark green claw clip with a thin, pink headband to hold back the rest of my hair except for the two wavy strands hanging in front. I knew my skin was a little on the pale side, like I hadn't seen the sun in weeks, and my eyes were a deep hazel color. My body was average size but I was known for my boobs being a lot bigger than I wanted them to be. I was wearing a forest green tank top with hip-hugger jeans, and a pair of black vans. The only jewelry I wore (which I never took off) were two rings (the one on my right ring finger was a gold-plated star on the end of a silver band that started off as one band and ended in three in resemblance of a shooting star, the other, on my left ring finger, was a thicker band of sterling steel with little crystals embedded around it in the order of the rainbow) and a black cord around my neck with a silver star pendant.

Alyce was also five foot five (when she wasn't wearing her boots) but she was dainty. She was rather thin with some curves, and even though she was tiny, out of all three of us she was the one with the butt. Her skin was lightly tanned, her eyes were a light blue-green, and her long hair was bleached blonde with a huge streak of bright pink on her right side (the streak started about six inches down from her roots and expanded into her length all the way down to her ends) and was currently styled in two long, thick braids. Ash was wearing a tight, black, Marilyn Manson t-shirt with tight, faded black jeans and a pair of black ass-kicking boots. She also wore an assortment of random rings (most of which were obviously fake); no finger was left bare and some fingers had more than one ring. Only one of these rings managed to stand out and that was the one with real turquoise embedded in a real silver band.

Mallory was maybe an inch shorter than the both of us, with wavy, layered black hair that just barely made it past her shoulders. She was naturally pale with a cute face nobody could resist (one of the main reasons why she handles adults so much better than us, besides the fact that Mace could be a pathological liar when she wanted to be) and dark brown eyes. Mace wore a bright yellow shirt with sleeves that ended at her elbows while pink and black argyle designs covered the front, along with a pair of dark blue jeans, white Vans, and absolutely no jewelry.

"Thank you for that lovely introduction, _Mom._ Now, please get your ugly ass out of our tent," I demanded, knowing I probably sounded a little _too_ harsh. It might not be the best idea to be a complete bitch in front of these guys.

Pendanski gave me another wary look and then made his way out of the tent, "Well, I have to get back to work now, so I'll just let you all get to know each other on your own."

Once he left, I quickly returned to the center of attention after pushing aside several of my personal belongings and sitting Indian style on my cluttered bed, "Forget the names that idiot told you, I'm Nox; this is Ash and Mace."

Ash gave a little wave at the sound of her name and Mace nodded.

X-Ray smirked, "Nice to meet the three of you."

"So, why did they send you here?" Magnet spoke up, curiously.

Mace slapped herself in the face at _that_ question. I smirked, knowing she must be quite sick of the whole situation right now, as it _had_ been all her idea in the first place. Although _because_ she slapped herself in the face everyone's eyes were now on her, but I knew she didn't want to be the one who had to answer this question.

"We escaped the California Detention Ward for Troubled Girls, where we had originally been placed. The judge figured that if he sent us back to where we were, we'd just try to escape again, even though I doubt we really would have. But, yeah, that's why they sent us here," I quickly explained for her.

"Because running away from _here_ would be suicidal?" Armpit asked the very obvious question.

I nodded, "Yep."

"Well, then what did you do to get sent to a ward? Isn't it considered a crazy house if a detention center is called a ward?" Zigzag asked, looking at the three of us separately and suspiciously.

I nodded, "Yeah, uhm, when children and adolescents are involved in crime, they usually have a child psychologist sit in during the trial to evaluate them from afar. If the shrink suspects something is mentally wrong with them, he or she will ask to meet with the child in question alone to determine what the mental issue is."

"So, all three of you are crazy?" Squid questioned, looking surprised.

"According to the doctors, yes," I answered. "Mace, here, apparently has severe anger issues; same with Ash, but she might also have borderline personality disorder; and, well, it seems that I could pass for a sociopath." I was surprised with myself by how calmly I could admit all of this.

"So, while _they_ can be fixed," X-Ray spoke up, motioning toward Ash and Mace. "_You're_ the real crazy one?"

I shrugged, "According to my file, yes."

"What exactly is a sociopath?" Armpit asked, confused.

I now looked to him as he stared at me, looking both lost and confused, "It basically means that I'm spontaneous, dangerous, without regret or even a conscience; I could do anything and it wouldn't matter to me. Basically, I'm a threat to society and should be locked up in a mental asylum for the rest of my life."

"But is that true?" X-Ray questioned.

"What do you mean?" I asked, not sure as to what he was implying, whether it be the accuracy of my knowledge about sociopaths or something else…

"All those things you just said about yourself; are they true? Are you really a sociopath?"

I stared at him, surprised that he'd actually ask. No one ever actually asks that question. "I don't believe I am."

"Really?" Armpit asked. "I mean if a doctor thinks it's true…"

"_What?_" I asked, annoyed. "If a doctor thinks it's true then it must be right? Is that what you were going to say?"

He looked embarrassed, not to mention a little scared.

"Doctors aren't always right. This one just believes that there was no way such a nice girl like me could do everything that I've done, unless there was something wrong with me. But last time I checked, whether I regret my crimes or not, I _do_ have feelings. I _do_ have regrets. But it just didn't sit well with her the fact that I did what I did because it's what I had to do."

"And what did you do, exactly?" Magnet piped in.

The boys looked at me and then to the other girls, waiting for one of us to start confessing.

Ash raised her hand in the air, awkwardly, to signal for their attention and then put it back down when all eyes were on her. We watched her fidget with her rings for almost a minute, refusing to look up and make eye contact with any of the boys (or even Mace and me), before she finally spoke. (She might have been nervous, but I knew she was only taking so long for me. I had been getting too riled up and I needed to calm down; and the only way to do that was to get the spotlight off of me.) "I accidentally blew up my school," Ash finally admitted, looking both impish and embarrassed as she continued to fidget. She had also chosen to sit on her cot while Mace was still lying down on hers.

"Accidentally?" Zigzag asked, raising his eyebrows in shock. "How could possibly blow up an entire school _accidentally?_"

"I had only meant to blow up the science lab, because I was pissed off at this teacher for always ragging on me, but I underestimated the amount of explosives I had," she explained, blushing with embarrassment.

The boys seemed to accept this explanation and then moved their eyes to Mace, who, unlike Ash, was never one to hesitate. "I beat the shit out of this guy for grabbing my ass and then practically blinded him with mace," she stated nonchalantly.

"Well, I guess now we know why you're called Mace…" X-Ray retorted.

Mace smirked, "Along with the knowledge that touching me will get you sent to the ICU."

X-Ray chuckled, "Point taken."

And then everyone was looking at me, sitting on my cluttered cot while quietly watching X-Ray and his tent mates. The moment where I had been forgotten was over and now it was time to find out why the shrink thought I was a psychopath.

"And now we're back to you. So, what is it that you did that's so horrible that you must be completely not right in the head?" X-Ray questioned, crossing his arms as he continued to stare at me.

I looked away, down at my hands in my lap, refusing to speak so carelessly this time.

"Nox was involved in a gang known for drug trafficking between the U.S., Mexico, and Hawaii, not to mention she had some minor involvement in two murder cases," Mace answered for me in her concerned voice.

"And why couldn't she tell us this herself when she's told us everything else?" X-Ray asked, turning on her.

Mace just shrugged. "It's the one thing she refuses to talk about… it took us _months_ to finally get it out of her," Mace answered, matter-of-factly. "And I'm pretty sure she still hasn't told us everything."

I looked up at her, surprised. I hadn't expected that last tidbit of information.

She was right though. I hadn't told them everything. I admitted my deeds in pieces, when I felt it was safe to talk about it.

I looked up cautiously and caught X-Ray's eyes.

He was staring at me curiously, suspiciously, as if he were trying to see through my irises to my soul within.

I looked away, afraid that he could, and quickly grabbed my bag so that I could continue unpacking my things.

"Alright guys, I think we should let the girls unpack," he finally declared, gesturing for the boys to leave. Then he turned back to us, "A bugle with be going off soon, don't worry about missing it, it's unmistakable. It just means that it's time for dinner. We'll see you girls in the Mess Hall."

"Thanks," Mace smiled at him.

He nodded, "Oh, and you might want to change into your jumpsuits before you leave the tent, you're already going to stand out enough as it is; you don't need your tight clothing making it any worse." And then, after giving me one last look, he quickly exited after his friends.

"Well, Nox, I think we might have just found a nice replacement for Bane," Mace spoke out happily as she quickly got up off her bed and began unpacking.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, making my voice sound as if I didn't care.

"Oh, come on," Mace continued. "He's totally your type."

"Who?" I asked, looking up at her.

"X-Ray!" She answered.

I snorted, "Yeah right, Mace." But I couldn't help but add, "And since when do I have a type?"

It was Ash who answered this one, "Nox, you've always had a type; you always go for the tough, bad boy who holds the authority. That's why you liked Bane so much, remember?"

"And it was obvious that X-Ray was the one with the authority in his tent," Mace added.

"Yeah, and the last thing I need is another guy like Bane who dumps me the moment he realizes that if I'm not around he's going to have to find another girl to fuck!"

"Not _all_ guys are like that!" Ash argued. "X-Ray could be better than that. You'll never know unless you give it a chance."

"And to give it a chance would mean that he would actually have to like me back," I pointed out, irritably, refolding the small amount of clothes I'd brought with me and sticking my books and iPod in my crate.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure you have a chance, Nox. Didn't you see the way he was looking at you?" Mace asked.

"Yeah, like he wanted to find out what you meant when you said that I hadn't told you everything!" I yelled at her. "You should have just stopped at murder! Why in the world did you have to bring up what you only _assumed_ about my crimes anyway?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I just couldn't help myself," Mace said, sounding apologetic.

"The last thing I need is X-Ray or any of these boys knowing the truth behind my reason for being here," I stated softly, still annoyed.

"And why can't you tell us?" Ash asked, looking hurt. "We've been there for you even when you wouldn't speak to us! You'd think that after six months together you'd actually be able to trust us!"

I looked up at her carefully, "I trust you. I just… my past is just complicated, okay? It's hard to explain."

"Try us," Mace challenged me.

But then the 'unmistakable' bugle went off.

"Not now," I said and stood up. I picked up one of the jumpsuits; quickly removing my sneakers and jeans, I slipped on the horrible orange _thing_. "Come on, let's go to dinner; I'm starving."

I tied the sleeves around my waist (like I saw some of the D-Tent boys wearing their own jumpsuits) and quickly put my boots on. The other two followed my lead and did the same.

Ash chuckled, "What's new? You're _always_ starving."

I laughed and pushed her, playfully, as she walked next to me out of the tent, "Shut up." Mace walked quietly on my other side.

***

**Ending Announcement: **Hope you guys enjoyed it! And always remember that I love feedback which means everyone should leave reviews!

And just to inform you all, like I did my _Shade_ readers, I am quite busy this week as I return to college this Saturday and start classes Monday! Ugh. So, not ready for it but whatever, it's coming anyway. And I'm freaking out and my brain is like two days ahead of me so I'm just completely OFF right now. Not to mention I've had to completely tear my room apart during my packing (which I've barely even begun yet!). But as a result of all of this tumult, I will not be updating as speedily as usual. So, I'll try my best but I highly doubt there will be weekly updates. But I just wanted to let everyone know so that (as one reviewer put it) you don't think I've died or abandoned my stories. I love you all and, hopefully, I'm not going anywhere! Except back to college, of course.

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

**More Confessions and a Letter**

We were the last ones to get into the Mess Hall, and when we walked in everyone's eyes were on us. I kept my chin up and ignored their stares, quickly leading my girls to the line. After waiting what seemed like forever, we finally got to the food. But once they put the mush on my plate, I suddenly wasn't so hungry anymore.

There were beans, beans, more beans, and something green I assumed must be spinach, or possibly kale. Then there was what appeared to be watery jello, except it was yellow. Last but not least, a slice of bread and a juice box.

"Nice," I muttered to myself.

This is what they call food?

Oh, now I am _really_ going to hate this place.

I waited for my girls to exit the line and then the three of us looked around for a place to sit.

"Yo! G-Tent! Over here!"

I looked up to see X-Ray waving us over to his table and then turned to my girls, questioningly.

Mace nodded, "Come on, Nox, it might not be so bad here if we have them on our side."

"Yeah," Ash agreed as she looked around the room. "Besides, there aren't any empty tables and at least they seem like somewhat decent guys. Some of these other creeps are little sketchy…"

Looking around, I realized she was probably right.

I sighed and began walking over to where X-Ray was waving from.

Might as well make the best of it, I figured.

The guys quickly made room for the three of us and we sat down, side by side.

X-Ray was at the head of the table. Armpit was on his right across from us, next to Magnet, and then two other boys we hadn't yet met. I sat on the left of X-Ray, thanks to Mace who took the seat I wanted. Mace sat next to me with Ash on her left. Next to Ash was Squid with Zigzag on the other side of him.

"Do you guys seriously call this food?" I asked, poking at the mush on my plate.

"Yep," X-Ray said. "And you better eat it, too. Tomorrow's going to be your first day digging and you're going to need all the energy you can get."

I groaned, annoyed, and decided to start with my bread.

"So, you guys know about us. Now, it's your turn to spill. What did you do to get sent here?" Mace spoke up, looking at the boys curiously.

The boys looked around at each other anxiously while we waited for someone start.

"Squid, why don't you start?" X-Ray finally declared.

Squid looked up at him and then nodded; the three of us looked down the bench at him.

"Well, I got caught for stealing from houses in one of the rich neighborhoods not far from where I lived," he answered, refusing to look at any of us.

Seemed like a reasonable excuse.

"I burnt down my school," Zigzag continued the confessing.

Another reasonable offense, almost as bad as Ash's; except burning down a school probably wasn't considered as bad as blowing one up in the eyes of a judge.

"I almost killed a guy beating him up," Armpit admitted across from me.

Well, at least he uses one of the few resources he's got, I figured as the three of us had quickly turned to look at him and then Magnet next to him.

"I got caught stealing a puppy from a pet store," Magnet stated.

"Why would you steal a puppy?" I asked, grinning.

Suddenly, a determined look crossed his face, "Because it's criminal the way they keep them locked up in cages!"

I put my hands up, surrendering, "Okay, point taken. I didn't mean to offend you, I was just curious. I mean, it seems kind of stupid that they sent you here just because you tried to steal a puppy, I bet they didn't take into account that you were just an animal lover wanting to give a dog a better life."

He thought about my words and then nodded; I figured it would work in calming him down.

"What about those two?" I asked a moment later, pointing to the two unknown boys next to Magnet with my fork.

"I stole Clyde Livingston's shoes," the first one spoke. He was an average looking kid with curly brown hair and boring brown eyes.

I didn't really know who Clyde Livingston was, but I was pretty sure he was some famous sport player.

I looked then at the last one, a little black boy with a mop of frizzy, black hair who could only have been maybe twelve or thirteen.

"Zero doesn't talk," X-Ray finally cut in.

"Why not?" Mace asked, confused.

X-Ray shrugged, "He just doesn't."

"Yeah, he only talks to Caveman," Armpit added.

"Caveman?" I asked, confused.

"That's me," the boring brown-haired boy answered.

I looked at him a little more curiously then.

Why would Zero only talk to him? Had they known each other before they came here? And if they did, Caveman didn't seem to have a problem with talking to the group.

I shook off the thought and looked at X-Ray.

He still hadn't told us why he was sent here.

"What about you?" I asked curiously, resting my elbow on the table with my chin in my hand as I waited patiently for him to answer.

He looked annoyed when I asked that, like he was hoping he might have gotten away without having to tell us.

He looked down at his plate. "I… I got caught for selling marijuana," he stated, sounding regretful.

"But?" Mace egged him to go on; I assumed she must have thought he wasn't telling us everything.

"But it wasn't really marijuana," Armpit laughed.

I looked to him now, "What?"

"X-Ray wasn't selling real marijuana, he was crushing up herbs and _saying_ it was marijuana," Armpit answered.

I couldn't help but snort as I looked toward X-Ray, "Seriously? You were selling fake weed? What would you have done if your customers had found out what they were smoking wasn't weed and decided to come after you?" I asked, shocked that he had actually tried to sell fake drugs.

I knew drugs; inside and out. They would have known the moment they smoked it that it wasn't real, unless they'd never smoked it before.

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I got caught before they could notice it," he spoke, obviously agitated by my laughter.

"Seriously!" I agreed, still laughing, practically falling off the bench.

"Well, I'm sorry my record isn't as amazing as yours!" He yelled, furious, and then stormed out of the building.

I stopped laughing the moment he started walking away.

"Way to go," Mace whispered in my ear, clearly unhappy that I was blowing it with the leader of the only tent that probably wasn't thinking about groping us right now.

The boys didn't know what to do after their leader was gone, but they definitely were not going to follow him when he was angry.

A moment later, I picked up what I had assumed was jello. "What is this?" I asked, bringing it up my nose to sniff it.

"It's banana jello," Squid answered.

"Ewww!" I said, immediately putting it back down.

Ash laughed, turning to Squid to explain, "Nox hates anything artificially flavored banana."

"Real bananas are okay, but _artificial_ banana is absolutely disgusting!" I told him, honestly.

"If you don't want it, I'll take it," Zigzag offered.

I looked him over carefully, and then handed my jello over to him, "Help yourself."

He grinned as he took it, "Thanks."

"No problem," I nodded, deciding to eat some of the beans and kale.

It was disgusting, but X-Ray was probably right; I was going to need my strength and energy tomorrow.

I suddenly wondered if X-Ray hated me now. I mean, I didn't like him and I didn't want to be with him, even if Mace and Ash really do think he's my type. Sure, he was pretty hot, and probably even better looking without his glasses, but I couldn't let myself go there again. I couldn't let myself care about a boy after the way the last one had treated me, even after everything we had been through together.

How dare he?

Did he have any brains at all?

I could have him killed for fooling me like that and making me think he loved me.

I should do something about this.

Suddenly, the perfect idea came to mind.

Quickly I got up, leaving my tray on the table, and hurried off back to the tent.

"Nox, where are you going?" Mace called out, confused.

"I need to write a letter," I called back without bothering to look back at her.

I needed to write this letter. I was going to let Bane know that he couldn't just dump me and think that was it!

I can't believe I never thought of this before!

*

"Uh oh," Ash said out loud, still at the table with the six boys and Mace.

"Uh oh?" Squid asked, looking at her, confused.

Ash ignored him and looked to her friend.

"She's scheming," Mace declared quietly.

Ash nodded, "But against who?"

"Considering the angry look on her face just moments ago, the same look she gets every time she thinks about Bane… there's only one possibility," Mace pointed out.

"But what good is a letter?" Ash asked, puzzled about the whole thing.

Mace shrugged, "Like I said earlier, we don't know everything about Nox. All we know is the basics of her drug and gang history along with the murders. Who knows what connections she may have?"

"Are you guys serious?" Caveman suddenly decided to butt in, looking scared. "That girl's murdered before?"

"She never goes into detail, but at the least she was an accessory to the crime," Mace answered him directly.

"But we think she was a lot deeper into the gang and drug stuff than she'll admit," Ash added.

"Damn," Squid said, looking surprised. "So, she's like a full blown criminal?"

Ash nodded.

"How can you know for sure though?" Armpit questioned, looking very confused.

"The cops were way more excited than usual when they first brought her into the Ward," Ash answered.

"Apparently they had been trying to catch her for a couple years," Mace piped in.

"And they barely even gave her a trial; according to Nox, it was like the sentence had already been set before she even entered the courtroom," Ash divulged.

"And how do you two know this?" Squid asked, suspiciously; wondering if these girls were just yanking their chains with this story to make Nox _seem_ tough.

"There were three girls to a room. We were the only ones at the time without a third roommate. When we heard a new girl had arrived, we had to check it out for ourselves," Ash stated as if it were obvious.

"So, that's how the three of you met? You were roommates?" Armpit asked.

Mace and Ash nodded.

"When you're in a place like that, you have to become friends with your roommates because if they won't stand up for you then no one will," Mace explained.

"Mace, I think we should go check on her," Ash finally decided.

"You're probably right," Mace said.

And then they both stood up with their trays, Mace taking Nox's tray as well, and dumped them with the rest. They walked slowly back to G-Tent, still discussing their friend's sudden urge to write a letter.

*

_Bane,_

_Who the hell do you think you are dumping me like I'm just another one of your conquests? Have you forgotten who I am? Who my father is? I could have you murdered in your sleep if I wanted to. Nobody dumps me without paying the consequences._

_Better watch your back, baby._

_N._

I smirked at my neat cursive handwriting.

The letter was the epitome of perfection.

There was no way he could read this and not get a little bit scared.

I pulled an envelope out of my box of stationary and quickly filled out the front, licked a stamp, and sealed it.

Now, I just wish I could see his face when he reads this.

"Nox?"

I looked up to see Ash and Mace standing in the entrance.

"Who are you writing a letter to?" Ash asked, coming closer and sitting opposite me on my no-longer cluttered bed.

"Bane," I answered, looking back down at the envelope in my hand.

"About what?" Mace asked, standing next to Ash.

"Him being a jerk," I said nonchalantly, looking down at the envelope in my hands.

Now, I just had to send it out.

I quickly stood up and exited the tent to find Mr. Pendanski without looking at either of them.

"Mr. Pendanski!" I called out loudly once I saw him walking into one of the buildings.

He stopped abruptly, looking shocked.

"Can I help you with something, Noelle?" He asked once I had made my way to him.

"Where can I mail this letter?" I asked, flashing the envelope in his face.

"There's a box on the wall in the Rec Room; you can put it in there and it will be mailed out at the end of the week," he explained, eyeing me cautiously to see if I would yell at him or call him a fool again.

"Thanks," I said and then quickly hurried off to the Rec Room.

When I reached the door, I saw that someone had scratched out 'Rec' and replaced it with "Wreck."

"Sounds promising," I mumbled, not quite sure what to expect when I opened the door.

Once inside, I quickly understood why they changed the sign. Just about everything was broken; everything except for the pool tables leaned, but then again the pool tables had been scratched up so badly there was hardly any green felt left.

The room was empty thanks to the fact that everyone was at dinner.

Scanning the walls, I quickly spotted the large wooden box on the wall with "Mail" written on it.

I hurried over to it and stuck my letter inside and then immediately left.

I went back to the tent to find Ash and Mace now sitting on their own respectable cots while they waited for me to return.

"You guys should see the Wreck Room!" I exclaimed. "It's a complete mess."

"Why did you go to the Wreck Room?" Ash asked.

"That's where the box for mail is," I answered, going over to my own cot and lying down.

"Do you think Bane will write back?" Mace asked unexpectedly.

I looked over at her cautiously, and then blew it off, "Sure he will… begging for mercy!" I chuckled at the thought.

The two of them exchanged glances, but they didn't say anything.

They didn't understand, but they knew it was best not to ask. They didn't know my history.

***

Well, that's that, I guess. I wonder what will happen next? Hope you guys liked it! Please remember to leave a review before you go!

InAnotherLife11


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

**First Hole**

That night we were told by Mr. Pendanski that we had to go to bed at nine-thirty in order to get plenty of sleep because we were going to have to wake up at four-thirty. When I asked why we had to get up so early he explained that it was in our best interest to start digging before the sun came up so that we would be finished before the sun reaches its highest point in the sky, as that was the hottest part of the day.

But once midnight rolled around I couldn't stay asleep any longer. Around two in the morning, I quietly got up and went outside to sit on the stairs.

I always had trouble sleeping at night.

Back home, I worked at night because I always performed my best at night; I would sleep during the day, when the sun was up.

At the Ward, I had tried to continue this; sleeping in between all my tasks and chores. My friends always laughed at me because of this and the staff hated me for it. But the day was my time to sleep and the night was my time to prowl.

I sighed and looked up at the millions of stars above in the black sky.

It was my favorite sight in the world to see the stars. I could stare at them for hours.

I touched the star resting in the middle of my collarbone, sadly. My father had given it to me two years ago, on my fourteenth birthday.

It was one of my favorite gifts from him, even though it was probably one of the least extravagant gifts he had ever given me and the only one I could bring with me.

"I miss you, daddy," I whispered up to the stars, wishing that he could hear me.

Occasionally he could be overbearing and controlling, but he did his best to please me. He wanted nothing more in the world than to see me take over for him and I let him down. There was no way he could train me while I was stuck in centers and work camps. I was losing my potential with every day I spent away from home.

No one's going to want me taking over the business when I get out of here, not when I've been away for so long. Not when I've already gone six months without training, add the next eighteen months to it and I was royally fucked.

I sighed again, depressed.

The last thing I wanted to do was start all over at the bottom of the chain.

*

The next morning I woke to the unmistakable bugle and groaned as I rolled over to look at the clock on top of Ash's crate. It really was four-thirty in the morning.

"Fuck," I cursed and rolled out of bed.

Ash slowly got up after me, pulling on her jumpsuit and boots, and then went over to wake up Mace, who always had trouble getting up in the morning, while I pulled my long hair up into a messy bun.

"Mace! Get up!" Ash shook her.

Mace groaned, "It's too early…"

"Yeah, well, you're going to have to get used to it," I said harshly, as I tied the sleeves of my jumpsuit around my waist. "'Cause we're going to be waking up this early every single day."

I put my boots on and headed out, Ash followed once she was sure that Mace wouldn't go back to bed.

We went over to where the boys were gathering around a little shed that was labeled 'Library.'

"Hey girls," Armpit said, coming up to us with more than half of D-Tent.

"Pendanski said you'll be digging with us out there," Squid informed us, holding a rolled up tortilla in his hand.

He caught me eyeing it and pointed over to where Pendanski was handing them out, "Breakfast is over there and trust me, you're going to want to eat, even if the food doesn't look so great, 'cause it's gonna be hot out there."

I nodded, "Thanks."

Ash and I headed over to the breakfast cart where Mace was already standing. We each grabbed a tortilla, eating our breakfast together in silence. Then we made sure our canteens were filled, got a shovel, and headed out to the lake.

Squid and Zigzag walked with us, a few feet behind X-Ray and Armpit.

"Is he still mad at me?" I questioned Squid, curiously.

Squid shrugged, "I don't know, he didn't talk much last night, but I'm sure he'll get over it soon enough."

"You're sure?" I asked, surprised.

He nodded, "I don't think he can hold a grudge too long against you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, confused at the meaning of his words.

He gave me a knowing look, "He thinks you're hot; he's not going to stay mad when he wants to get with you."

"Get with me?" I laughed out loud. "You're kidding?"

He shook his head.

"Did he say that himself?"

"He said he'd like to, but after seeing the look on his face when he first laid eyes on you in your tent, he really didn't need to say anything at all," he explained and then left us to catch up with X-Ray and Armpit. Zigzag followed after him without question.

"Told you so," Mace smirked at me. "It was just _too_ obvious."

"Shut up," I mumbled, walking ahead of them.

The last thing I needed was one of these boys wanting to get with me; especially someone from the same cut as Bane.

Mr. Sir showed each of us where to dig and then spit the shells of his sunflower seeds on the ground and left.

Ash and Mace both looked to me as if waiting for me to tell them what to do. Of course, unlike me, they had never been forced to dig a hole before.

I just ignored them and jammed my shovel into the dirt.

*

A couple hours later, the water truck came around to fill the canteens. I had finished my canteen about a half an hour ago and it felt like forever until Mr. Sir finally made it to our group.

"Line up, Girl Scouts," he called out as he got out of his truck and walked to the spigot at the back.

I stepped toward the truck, but once I noticed a particular-looking line-up going on I quickly stopped. The boys had their own way of ranking each other.

X-Ray was first as the leader, then Armpit, Squid, Zigzag, Magnet, Caveman, and Zero.

"What do we do?" Ash asked me as she and Mace came up on either side of me.

I looked back to the line where Mr. Sir was handing X-Ray's canteen back to him, and X-Ray walked back to his hole while Armpit stepped forward to hand his canteen to Mr. Sir next.

"I guess we get in line," I said as I headed for the end of the line.

I got into line behind Zero with Mace behind me and Ash behind her.

Finally, we were at the front and my canteen was filled. I quickly took a large gulp of water and then tossed aside my canteen and began digging again.

"Holy shit, Nox! How are you already this far?" Ash asked after coming over to check out my own hole. "Mace and I are barely even a foot in!"

I stopped and shrugged my shoulders, "This isn't my first hole."

"Where else would you have dug holes like these?" Squid asked, having heard Ash's complaint and coming over to check out my hole as well.

"You gotta hide the bodies somewhere," I answered nonchalantly as I went back to digging.

I almost laughed when I looked up and saw the toothpick fall out of his mouth. "So, you're serious?" He asked, completely bewildered. "You really have murdered?"

I nodded, reluctantly, "Guess I can't keep it a secret any longer."

"Why'd you kill them?" He asked, suddenly looking interested.

I shrugged again, "When someone gets cold feet and runs off to a cop, or we find out someone joined the gang undercover, you gotta get rid of them. It's just the way things work."

"How many people did you really kill?"

"Only two, like my record says, both of which attempted to be a witness in court against a couple of our more reliable members. But I've buried maybe a dozen of them."

"Why have you only killed two and buried a dozen?" Squid questioned, looking perplexed.

I stopped and looked at him curiously, "Why? Are you here undercover to get all the dirty secrets from me?"

He laughed, "And I thought Zigzag was paranoid…"

"I'm part of a gang associated with drug trafficking, I think I'm allowed to be suspicious when someone starts asking too many questions," I defended myself.

He nodded, "I guess that makes sense. But I'm no undercover agent; I'm just a sixteen year old delinquent."

I looked him over carefully and then nodded, "You know how you guys lined up for the water?"

He shrugged, "Yeah, what about it?"

"How does that work?"

"The leader goes first because he's been here the longest. The newest ones go to the end of the line and work their way up as people come and go."

I nodded, already having assumed that that was how it worked. "Well, think of it like that. In a gang, you have to work your way up from the bottom. And the people at the bottom get rid of the evidence. The people higher up get rid of the witnesses."

He nodded, appearing to understand.

"Can I dig my hole now?" I asked.

Squid finally got the hint and went back to his own hole; Mace and Ash did the same after staring at me a few seconds longer.

I had never admitted much about my time in the gang before. I bet they were surprised that I was just handing out random information to Squid.

But it didn't much matter to me anymore.

After last night, I had considered my options and decided that the best thing for me was to just stay out of the gang when I returned. I was sure my father would understand the reasoning behind my decision. If I got caught once, I could get caught again, and next time I would most likely have to do _real_ time. The last thing he would want would be for me to do time in prison.

*

By the time lunch rolled around, I was about halfway done with my hole and so ridiculously hungry it wasn't even funny.

I practically wolfed down my turkey sandwich and gram crackers.

"Slow down much?" Squid asked, eyeing me humorously as he, Zigzag, and Magnet sat with us while we ate.

"Nope," I replied, grinning and took a bite of my green apple.

Ash laughed at the two of us and then faced Squid, who was sitting next to her, "Surprisingly enough, Nox _had_ been taught table manners as a child, but now that she only gets food when she's scheduled to get food, she's always too hungry to use them."

"I have a fast metabolism," I admitted, timidly.

"Meaning: she's always hungry," Mace clarified.

Squid nodded, seeming to understand.

"I'm surprised you didn't call her 'Binge' considering the way she wolfed down that sandwich," he commented sarcastically.

"That name was already taken," Mace stated.

"Yeah, they roomed her with Purge and Anorexia," Ash added.

"Purge and Anorexia?" Zigzag asked, confused.

"Yeah, Binge ate too much too fast all the time, Purge ate rather normally but she always snuck into the bathroom when no one was around to puke it back up, and, well, Anorexia gave all her food to Binge when she thought no one was looking so that it would appear that she actually ate her food but she rarely ever did."

"I see," Zigzag said, looking thoughtful.

"So then where did 'Nox' come from?" Squid asked, still looking unsure.

"Nox is Latin for 'Night.'" I stated casually.

"Yeah, and Nox prefers night to day. She'd be nocturnal if the world would let her," Ash laughed.

"Nocturnal?" Magnet questioned, puzzled.

"It means she'd rather sleep during the day and be awake at night, you know, like cats and owls," Mace explained.

"Ohhh," Magnet now understood. "So, what about you two, how did you get your names?"

"Well, you already know how I got mine. I carry mace and I like to spray it in the face of anyone who pisses me off," Mace pointed out.

He nodded, "And Ash?"

"I like volcanoes," Ash spoke up nonchalantly.

"That's it?" Squid asked, confused.

"No, that's not it," I cut in. "You see, when Ash gets angry she tends to go a little overboard, like blowing up her school for example. So, we call her Ash because when she does get riled up everything eventually turns to ash."

"Meaning that even when she's not literally blowing things up, her life usually still ends up in ruins," Mace added.

"It's a lot like a volcano erupting, you know? It shoots out lava and ash and buries cities alive," I said, comparing my friend to her favorite natural phenomenon.

All three of them finally nodded and I decided to turn over the conversation to them.

"So, how did you guys get your nicknames?" I asked, taking a sip of water from my canteen.

"Yeah, I'm still trying to figure out why in the world they call you Squid," Ash piped in.

Squid scratched the back of his head bashfully, "Well, I told you I got caught stealing from houses in a rich neighborhood not far from where I lived…"

"Yeah…" Mace trailed off, wanting him to continue.

"Well… when the cops barged in, being tipped off by some neighbor that someone had broken into the house, they caught me just as I was trying to remove a squid from this huge aquarium in the middle of the living room."

"That's interesting," I chuckled. "Where would you have put the squid once you managed to get it out of the tank?"

He shrugged, "I don't know. I usually sold everything the moment I stole it for cash. I figured I could sell the squid, too, assuming I could get a good amount of money for it."

I nodded.

"Zigzag?" I questioned, looking to him next.

"It's his hair," Squid said, reaching up and ruffling his friend's hair even more. "It's always sticking up in every direction and it's impossible to tame."

The three of us laughed at that and Zigzag blushed.

"I can't help it if my hair is uncontrollable," he pouted.

"You could try shaving it off," Magnet pointed out, rubbing his own shaved head. "You don't see my hair sticking out in every direction, do you?"

"Man, shut up," Zigzag joked, punching Magnet in the arm.

"So, what about you, Magnet?" I asked, after finally managing to stop laughing.

"It's 'cause my hands are like magnets!" He exclaimed, showing us his hands as he demonstrated his spirit fingers to us.

Squid laughed, "He just says that because he can steal just about anything."

"I guess that's always a good trait to have," I commented, finishing my apple. "What about the other guys?" I asked, wanting to know the reasons behind the nicknames of the other boys.

Squid was the one to answer my question, "Well, everyone thinks X-Ray is called X-Ray because of his glasses but it's also because X-Ray is Pig Latin for Rex."

"Weird coincidence," I cut in.

"Yeah," he nodded and then went on. "Armpit got his nickname his first week here because a scorpion had bit him in the armpit."

"_Ouch_," Mace commented.

Squid chuckled, "His armpit was swollen for maybe two weeks." Then he looked around us to see Caveman and Zero had both gone back to digging.

"Zero… well, Pendanski says the reason we call him Zero is because there's nothing going on in his head."

"That's a little harsh," Ash spoke out.

"Yeah, it is," Squid agreed. "I mean, we don't know what's going on his head, but I doubt it's nothing. We called him Zero because his last name was… Zeroni, I think, or something like that, and since he wouldn't talk to us we really didn't know what else to call him." He shrugged it off.

"And Caveman?" I asked.

"X-Ray called him a Neanderthal the moment he first saw him and during his first week here he found a fossil in his hole."

"And fossils remind people of cavemen," I added.

He nodded, "I guess."

I nodded, too, and finally decided I should get back to digging my hole. "Well, this has been fun, guys, but I really think we should all get back to digging, especially my friends, here, who still have a long way to go," I pointed out as I patted my girls on the back.

"Ugh, don't remind us," Ash complained, annoyed that she was only two feet deep into her hole.

***

So, basically how I am doing this is, I'm trying to stay ahead of the posting with my writing. So, when I finish a chapter, I add a chapter. So, the reason I'm finally posting Chapter Four here is because I just finished Chapter Seven. And I'm currently halfway through Chapter Eight, but I might have gotten a little stuck.

And, just putting it out there, college homework is RIDICULOUS. It's basically more reading than you'd ever actually need. But oh well. I have to deal with it anyway in order to actually get good grades this year. Seriously, I just started classes two nights ago and I'm already behind on homework. It's kind of hopeless though.

Anyway… hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. I love reviews so I hope more people leave some. And well, get excited for Chapter Five because the drama is finally about to begin!

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

**X-Ray**

Zero finished his hole first, which surprised me. He was so small compared to the other guys, but he was faster than every single boy in the camp.

Armpit finished second out of our group.

I finished third to everyone's amazement.

"You're _finished_?" Phoenix yelled out, obviously not happy considering she still had a foot to go.

I just nodded and began heading back to camp.

Halfway there, I suddenly felt as if I was being followed. I figured it was a crazy thought, that I was letting my past catch up with me, but I couldn't help but glance behind me, just to make sure.

And twenty steps behind me… was X-Ray, with his shovel resting on his shoulders, behind his head, and his hands holding it there. He must have finished just shortly after I left.

Well, at least I knew I still retained my best survival skill of knowing when I was being followed. I was surprised I hadn't lost it during the last six months.

I stopped abruptly and turned around to wait for him, with my shovel up in the air leaning on my right shoulder.

I didn't like it when people were upset with me, especially when they were above me in rank. X-Ray was _way_ above me in rank here at Camp Green Lake and I needed to apologize to him.

He stopped ten feet away from me, noticing that I had stopped to wait for him. I just barely saw him look down and shake his head before he started walking again.

Okay, so this isn't going to be easy.

"Hey," I said once he got closer.

I began walking at the same lazy pace as him as he retorted with, "What do you want now? Got something else to laugh at me for?"

That was harsh…

"Look, I'm sorry I laughed at you. I shouldn't have made fun of you like that, especially in front of your tent mates."

"Like I care about what you think," he retorted.

"Obviously you do care, or else you wouldn't have stormed out of the Mess Hall yesterday," I shot back.

He just shook his head and started walking faster, "Okay, well, you've said what you had to say; now leave me alone."

"I'm not done yet!" I quickly caught up with him. "Look, X-Ray, I get it. You're the leader of D-Tent; and for me to laugh at you like that bothers you because it takes you down a notch and will make you less threatening to the others… and then one day you're position gets taken from you."

"That's usually how it works," he admitted unhappily.

"That's exactly how it works," I corrected him. "And I'll try not to do it again."

"Well, you better try hard," he commented, turning his head for a second to glare at me.

"I will," I conceded.

"Good."

"But that's not the only reason why I shouldn't have laughed at you," I quickly pointed out before he decided to get rid of me by walking even faster.

"What else could there possibly be?" He asked, stopping abruptly to face me.

I stopped, too, meeting his gaze.

"I know from personal experience that it takes a lot of guts to sell drugs. Most people aren't cut out for it; they get too caught up in their fears and paranoia. And I don't know what you were thinking, thinking you could sell _fake_ drugs, but I _do_ know that, _that_ had to take _even more_ guts to pull off successfully."

I saw his glare soften just a little bit, "Do you really mean that?"

"I do," I answered honestly.

He nodded, seeming to accept my answer, and then continued to walk toward camp.

I continued to walk with him, uncertain, "So, are we cool?"

"Maybe," he answered, nonchalantly.

"Maybe?" I asked, anxious that he was being indecisive yet pleased that the glare had left his face.

"I'll accept your apology, but you're going to have to work a lot harder than that if you want to be 'cool' with me."

I nodded, grinning at him, "Okay, I get it; I'm still not cool because I'm still new here."

He nodded, "Well, I'll give you props for understanding that you're still new here, and because you were smart enough to come with a nickname and digging experience."

"So, nicknames and digging experience earn you coolness around here?" I asked, jokingly.

"That _is_ how it works, the moment you get a nickname you're usually one of us and the longer you're here the less people will make fun of you."

"I see."

"But since you came with a nickname and your own friends, we're gonna have to really make you earn the right to be one of us," he smirked, looking at me as we walked.

I nodded, "I suppose that's fair, but I will be honest… considering some of your boys' names, I am so thankful it was Mace and Ash who came up with my name. I mean, with names like Armpit and Caveman, who knows what you would have called me!"

He laughed, "Well, considering the way you were with Mom yesterday, if it came down to first impressions it probably would have been something like 'Hot Bitch #1.'"

I about keeled over with laughter at that.

"That's hilarious!" I finally said, breathing deeply from laughing so hard.

"Well, you were pretty harsh with him," he pointed out.

I nodded, "True, but you should have seen Ash. Now, _she_ got all up in his face like a true bitch."

"When?" X-Ray asked, curious.

"Yesterday, just after we had met him in the supplies office. You should have seen it; the look on his face was just _priceless_."

"I wish I'd been there," he stated quietly.

Finally we were back at camp and I couldn't wait to take a shower.

"You know what, Nox? You're alright," he finally said after we had put our shovels away and headed toward the tents.

"You're not so bad yourself," I smiled at him.

"You gonna come to the Wreck Room later?" He asked, randomly.

I shrugged, "I don't know, I was thinking about just hanging out in the tent."

"Well, you should come and check it out," he stated.

"Oh, I already checked it out yesterday; that place is a mess!"

He chuckled, "Yeah, it is, but it's where we hang out."

This was a good sign. He was asking me to come to the place where he and his friends hung out, which meant that he was also asking me to hang out with him and his friends.

I nodded, "Okay, I'll think about it, but right now I just want to take a shower."

He smirked, "I'll bet."

I let his sly expression go, praying that he wasn't imagining me taking a shower, and started walking toward my tent, "See you later."

He quickly went into his own tent and was out of sight.

Quickly, I made my way over to my own tent and went inside. I grabbed my second jumpsuit and a clean dark purple tank top and underwear, along with my toiletries.

Back outside, I headed for the brand new showers built just for us girls.

In the boys' showers, there were maybe ten or so sections with shower heads, but Ash, Mace, and I would have to share only two stalls. But considering the fact that I was a pretty fast digger and they would probably be finished in the next hour or two, it didn't really matter. I would shower alone and they would probably shower at the same time.

Locking myself into one of the very tall stalls, I quickly removed my clothes and put them on the bench that was thankfully out of reach of the spray. Then I turned on the water and screamed.

"Ahhh!" I yelped. "It's fucking cold!"

I thought I had heard laughter outside of the stall after quickly removing myself from the stream of cold water, but I tried to ignore it.

Reluctantly, I put myself back under the water and tried to wash as quickly as possible so that I could be done before I got hypothermia.

Five minutes later I was squeaky clean and thankful that I took the speediest shower of my life, considering the water had turned itself off on its own.

If I had cleaned myself at a normal pace, I probably would have just been rinsing the conditioner out of my hair or lathering myself up with my body wash when the water shut off… and I would have been really pissed. But since I was already finished, I wasn't that bothered by it. I quickly dried myself off and got dressed.

Normally, I would prefer to dress in my room, and not the bathroom, but since I was in a camp surrounded by boys I figured it would be best not to let them see me walking around, wet and naked, in only a towel.

Coming out of the stall with my clothes on and flip flops on my feet, I figured I'd put my boots back on when I returned to the tent, I found X-Ray waiting for me, looking a lot cleaner than before, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist.

"Did you have some trouble in there?" He asked with an amused grin.

"Yeah, no one told me the water would be _freezing_!" I growled, annoyed.

He chuckled, "That's usually Mom's job to tell you about the showers, but I guess he decided not to after Ash got all up in his face, as you put it."

I growled again, "Well, as much as I hate cold showers, I don't regret letting her tell him off because as I said, his face was _priceless_. I mean, you'd think at least a couple of you boys would have put him in his place by now! Too bad for him, it was a couple of girls who managed to wipe that fake ass smile off his face." I continued to grumble all the way back to G-Tent with X-Ray continuing to laugh at me the whole way.

"I guess you have a point there," he said, following me into my tent. "We aren't very hard on him."

"And he's the only adult with a nickname. I mean, you _seriously_ call him _Mom_?" I added.

"What's wrong with that? If it makes this place a little homier to us that we have someone to call Mom, is it really such a bad thing?" He objected.

"It's not really a bad thing, it's just weird," I stated as I sat on my bed and put on my boots. "Then again, why not give him a nickname? He _is_ the only adult here who doesn't call you boys by your nicknames."

I then stood up and took my comb out of my crate and began to detangle my curls.

"That's also very true. Even the Warden calls us by our nicknames…" He pitched in.

I turned to see him still standing just inside the entrance of my tent, in his towel.

"Shouldn't you get dressed now?" I asked.

"Why? Do I make you uncomfortable?" He questioned with that sly look back on his face.

"Maybe," I commented, not wanting to say yes, but knowing I'd be lying if I said no.

The boy had more than just nicely toned arms; he also had some nicely toned abs. His shoulders were slightly broad and his chest was chiseled to perfection and without chest hair. Not to mention, his skin was as dark as espresso.

In all honesty, he was pretty damn gorgeous.

"Just maybe?" He asked, stepping closer to me.

"Were you hoping for a yes?" I smirked at him as I put down my comb.

He thought about it for a second and then nodded, stepping even closer to me, "I might have been…"

For a second, I could feel my heart beating faster than usual but I managed to keep my grin in place and cover my wave of panic, "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint, but you just don't have that much of an effect on me."

He didn't even falter, "At least I know I have _some_ effect on you…"

He was too close. We were less than a foot away from touching and he wasn't wearing anything but a towel!

Don't let him get to you, Nox. If you panic now, you'll lose.

"Some effect yes, but it's so little it's almost miniscule."

Oh, that was perfect. I couldn't help but widen my smirk.

But I could tell from the defiant look on his face, and the fact that he wasn't backing away in defeat, that he wasn't going to give up just yet.

Before I knew it, I heard a reel of laughter and footsteps on the stairs and in walked Ash and Mace, done with their holes a lot sooner than I thought they would be.

"Nox!?" Ash spoke out first, shocked to find that I wasn't alone.

"And X-Ray," Mace unnecessarily pointed out the obvious.

He turned around to face them, finally stepping away from me and I suddenly let out of the breath of air I didn't know I was holding in.

"X-Ray, here, was actually just leaving," I announced, casually.

"Right," he said, looking back at me for a moment. "I still need to get dressed. I'll see you girls in the Wreck Room."

And then he left, towel and all.

A minute after he had exited the tent flaps, Mace finally turned back to me with her hand on her hip, "Is there something you want to tell us, Nox?"

I noticed now that they were both completely covered in dirt; it was all over their jumpsuits, their faces, and in their hair.

I hope I didn't look that bad when I was walking back to camp with X-Ray.

Wait, why did I care?

"No," I quickly shook my head and then turned back to my mirror, which I had hung from the beam closest to my bed. Picking up my comb again to part my hair, I decided to do braids today.

"Really now?" Mace continued, determined to get something out of me.

"He just wanted to see if he could make me uncomfortable in his towel. It didn't work," I explained as if it didn't matter.

"Liar," Ash commented.

"Excuse me?" I asked, turning around quickly to confront her.

She just rolled her eyes at me, "Oh, come on, Nox! We aren't stupid. We know you better than anyone else!"

"Which isn't saying much considering how little you actually know about me," I snapped back.

"But we're girls, Nox!" Mace piped in. "We may not know as much about you as we'd like but we know when a girl is into a guy! It's written all over your face! And his! So, why can't you just admit that you like him?"

I turned away from them and went back to fixing my hair, but I couldn't help but look in the mirror and know that they were right. I was _somewhat_ attracted to X-Ray and it was obvious that there was something going on between us just a minute ago, but they just didn't understand that it could never _be_.

"Nox, you can tell us anything…" Mace added.

"Look, you were right about what you said yesterday, I haven't told you everything. I've got a lot of secrets and, no, I will not share them with you, but you have to understand that the reason why I won't share them is because you are both a lot better off _not_ knowing. But… one thing I will tell you is that in my gang, I'm not just a minor involvement. To be honest, I'm practically in the center of it all and when you're _that_ involved, its best not to get too attached to anyone, especially romantically."

"What about Bane?" Ash asked, confused. "You were with him romantically."

"He was already a part of it; he was also approved of by the higher-ups," I explained.

"And X-Ray isn't…" Mace pointed out.

I nodded, "Exactly."

"But, Nox, you aren't even near these people! How are they gonna find out if you decide to have a little fling while you're here?" Ash questioned.

"I'm still in the same country," I pointed out. "And trust me when I say that we are _trained_ to find out these things."

She nodded, "But couldn't you have a fling and just not tell him anything?"

"I could," I agreed. "But I doubt X-Ray would be okay with that."

"Point taken," Ash concluded, no longer having an argument.

"But you said Bane dumped you so he could be with other girls… is he allowed to do that?" Mace asked, looking slightly perplexed.

"If he's just fucking them… yes," I answered. "He's allowed to do whatever he wants. He's a guy; it's always different with guys. I could never randomly hook up with people, but he can. Of course, it's too bad for him that he doesn't know how much the higher-ups would be on my side if I told them that he was using me to get to them…"

"Is that what that letter was about?" Mace asked.

"Sort of."

"But it's been five months since he dumped you; does it even matter anymore?" She continued.

"It matters to me," I answered defiantly. "He may think he's such a big shot with his own ranking, but apparently he's forgotten that I'm higher-ranked than him and much closer to a certain boss."

"Yet, even though you're threatening him now, you still haven't bothered to contact anyone else."

"Not yet," I replied, smirking. "I'd like to hear what he has to say first."

They both seemed to grasp the fact that I was only just beginning to have my fun with Bane, after giving him a long period of time to _think_ that he was in the clear.

"You two should go shower," I said, headed for the exit. "Oh, and you might want to be quick about it because the water is freezing and it'll only stay on for five minutes."

And then I made my way out of my tent. I needed to get away from them before I spilled anything else, besides I figured I should take up X-Ray's offer and check out the Wreck Room just a little more closely.


	6. Chapter Six

** Chapter Six**

**Conversations Lead to Silence**

Well, the Wreck Room looked about the same as yesterday, except this time it was full of delinquent boys lounging around on the broken furniture, playing pool and foosball, playing card games at the tables, or just standing around and conversing with each other.

The first D-Tenter I found was Zigzag (you honestly could NOT miss his hair) sitting on the floor in front of a broken TV that only displayed a static screen.

No picture, no volume, just static.

"Hey, Zigzag," I greeted him happily, squatting down so that I could be eye level with him. "What are you doing?"

"Watching TV," he replied, as if it were obvious.

I nodded. From what I understood Zigzag wasn't completely right in the head. But I decided to play along anyway.

"What are you watching?"

"Jerry Springer," he answered, nonchalantly.

"Oh, really? I didn't know they still aired that show. I haven't seen it in years," I commented.

"Mhm, it's still on but it's mostly reruns," he replied.

"Wow, I can't believe they actually let those people on TV…" I added.

"But that's what makes it so funny," he said, grinning at me, "because it's so awful!"

I smiled at him. He looked like an innocent little kid when he smiled. It was definitely a cute look for him.

"Hey, you came!" I heard X-Ray call out from behind us.

Slowly, I stood up straight and turned around to face him. He looked both a little surprised and slightly happy that I had decided to come and check out the Wreck Room again.

"I did," I said, putting my hands up and shrugging my shoulders in a 'what can I say?' sort of way, it's not like there was really anything else to do.

"Where are your friends?" He asked, making simple conversation.

"I suspect they are just exiting the showers," I answered, looking at the nonexistent watch on my wrist. "They should be here soon enough."

He nodded, "Did you warn them about the cold water?"

"Don't you mean _freezing_ water?" I corrected him. "And yes, I did. I figured that someone should since Pendanski decided not to."

He chuckled, "Still don't regret letting Ash put him in his place?"

I shook my head, "Nope. Why should I? Not like I care much for the guy."

"He's not that bad," X-Ray argued.

"He's a liar and a jerk," I retorted quickly.

"And when has he ever lied to you?" X-Ray asked curiously. "It's not like he lied to you about the water, he just didn't tell you about it…"

"I'm not talking about the water," I rebuked. "I'm talking about that gag-me speech he pulled on us just after we met him: _'Now, I just want you girls to know that you may have done some bad things but that does not make you a bad person. I respect each and every one of you.'_"

X-Ray suddenly understood, "Oh, that."

"Yes, _that_. It was the biggest load of bullshit anyone has ever told me! I could see right through him the moment he started talking! He has _no_ respect for us! He just says he does because if we think he's on our side than he actually has power over us."

"I never thought of it like that," he responded.

"Yeah, well, it's not your fault. I just know bullshit when I hear it," I said, deciding this conversation should probably end here before I get too riled up over someone as unimportant as Mr. Pendanski.

"Hey guys!" I heard Mace call out as she came up behind me with Ash in tow.

"Hey," X-Ray and I both greeted them at the same time.

"So, what is there to do in this place?" Mace asked, looking around the room skeptically.

"Well… you can watch TV with Zigzag," I offered with a shrug and then motioned to the crazy-haired kid sitting on the floor in front of the static television screen. "He's apparently watching Jerry Springer." I added, slightly sarcastic, but smiling innocently none-the-less.

Mace looked over to where Zigzag sat, intently watching the TV. A moment later, she shrugged and went over to sit next to him. "So, what's going on?" she asked him, curiously, and then he started going into detail about the crazy woman who was (apparently) screaming her head off at her ex-boyfriend at the moment.

I smirked at the two of them, knowingly. Turning back to the others, I noticed Ash watching Mace and Zigzag as well, but with an apprehensive expression on her face, as if she were asking herself when Mace had gone to Looneyville.

"Hey Ash!" Suddenly, she perked up at the sound of Squid's voice calling her name and quickly turned to look at him. "Wanna play some pool?"

Ash smiled and nodded, "Sure!" She quickly went over to where he stood next to one of the two pool tables, a pool stick in each hand.

"Alone again," X-Ray commented, now turning his attention back to me. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you just pawned off your friends so you could spend time alone with me." He then proceeded to cross his arms and stare at me suspiciously with that smirk back on his face again.

"I did no such thing," I shot right back at him, crossing my own arms. "I merely suggested to Mace about watching TV with Zigzag, and Squid got Ash to play pool with him all on his own."

"Uh huh," he stated, apparently not convinced. "Just admit it, you want me."

I scoffed at him, hiding my shock at how blunt he was about it, "I want no such thing."

Quickly, I made my way to the exit.

"Where are you going?" X-Ray asked, confused, as he followed me toward the door.

"I'm leaving, obviously."

"But why?"

"Because you obviously think that I came here for you and _you're wrong_," I answered, dramatically, as I turned around to face him the moment we were both outside.

"Is that so?" He asked, sarcastically.

"It is," I replied, defiantly.

"Then what are you still doing here?" He questioned, motioning around him. "Why are you still talking to me if what you say is true?"

I didn't know what to say to that.

Why _was_ I still there if I didn't want anything to do with him?

Well, it's not that I don't want anything to do with him. I want us to be cool. But I don't want him to want me, nor do I want to want him.

Wow, I was barely making sense there even to myself…

"You're the one who stopped me, remember? In case you forgot, I was the one trying to leave," I finally stated, glaring at him before I quickly turned around and started walking back to G-Tent.

"Oh, come on, Nox, you're not leaving," he quickly caught up with me and lazily placed his arm around my shoulder. "You're only doing this to prove your point."

I flinched as his hand sent a bolt of electricity down my arm, practically numbing it for a few seconds. I immediately pulled away from him, "Don't touch me."

It was a direct order and nothing to be taken lightly. Thankfully, I think he was aware that I was serious about this.

"Okay, I'm sorry. But, seriously, you know there's something going on between us," he said, rushing ahead and stopping in front of me so that I would have to stop as well and face him again.

"I know no such thing," I spat out, coldly.

"Oh, come on. I thought you wanted to be cool with me?" He argued, annoyed.

"If _that's_ the only way I can be cool with you, then I take back what I said. I'm sorry, but I'm not interested." I answered in a tone that emphasized giving up.

"Honestly?" He asked, looking at me seriously through his thick glasses.

I just stared right back at him, "Honestly."

He looked down and nodded, "Okay then, if that's how you really feel."

"It is." Honestly, I swear, I even impress myself when I lie. It always sounds so real. "So, are we cool?"

I was actually worried he might say no, but it was all for his own good in the end.

Eventually, he answered, "Yeah, we're cool."

"Good," I said, giving him a small smile. "I'm glad we got that cleared up."

He nodded, but he didn't look happy about it. "Yeah, me too."

I nodded.

And now there was an awkward silence. Our first one since I started talking to this boy.

"Well, um, I'm going to go back to the Wreck Room. I'll see you at dinner," he finally declared.

"See you," I replied, sweetly, as I started making my way to my tent again and he headed inside.

Once he was out of sight, I stopped walking to take a deep breath and let it back out, and then finally continued on my way.

That was harder than I thought it would be.

*

X-Ray ate dinner quietly with his tent mates and the girls from G-Tent. He didn't bother to talk to anyone, not even his closest friends, Armpit and Squid.

The other boys noticed his silence but they didn't understand the cause of it. Everything had seemed fine beforehand.

Occasionally, one of them would speak up, share unknown information with the girls, but for the most part they didn't talk. Their leader was obviously not in the talking mood and he tended to glare at them every time someone decided to speak up.

Eventually, no one was saying anything just in case they ticked him off even more.

*

After watching Nox dutifully eat the slop for dinner, acting quieter than usual, Ash and Mace knew that something was definitely up.

After dinner, they conversed quietly in the tent while Nox was 'out for a walk,' as she had put it.

They knew Nox; she only went out for walks when something was bothering her and both girls were pretty sure this 'something' was X-Ray.

"Neither of them said a single thing throughout dinner," Mace commented.

"Something was obviously going on between them earlier today in the Wreck Room, when we first arrived," Ash added, quietly.

They were both sitting huddled together on Mace's bed, whispering all the while just in case Nox walked in without warning.

"And don't forget what happened before that when we walked in on them here and X-Ray was standing not even a foot away from her in just his towel," Mace pointed out.

"Oh my God, when we walked in I could have bathed in the tension and chemistry shooting between them, it was so thick!"

Mace nodded, "Can you imagine if we had walked in just five minutes later? Who knows what we would have seen!"

Ash gasped, just realizing that what Mace said was probably true, "Jesus Christ, that would have been awkward…"

They lapsed into silence for a several moments, thinking over the entire situation.

"No," Ash finally spoke up. "I don't think they would have really been doing anything…"

"Why not?" Mace asked, unhappily.

"Because it's _Nox!_ I think that if we had walked in five minutes later we probably would have found her putting a stop to the whole thing as fast as she possibly could."

Mace considered this, "You're probably right." Then she paused, "Wait. Maybe that's why they were so quiet!"

"What do you mean?" Ash asked, befuddled.

"When we left them alone together in the Wreck Room! She must have told him that nothing could happen between them _then_! I mean, it all makes sense if you think about it. They were both normal when X-Ray left our tent and they both seemed fine when we walked up to them in the Wreck Room, so it had to have happened after we left them alone!"

"Oh my God… you're so right, Mace!" Ash exclaimed.

They weren't even bothering to whisper anymore in their revelation.

"We should have never left her alone with him," Ash suddenly stated, matter-of-factly.

"Well, we hadn't technically left them alone… I just went over to talk to Zigzag while he watched Jerry Springer on the broken TV. What were you doing?" Mace immediately asked after quickly realizing that she didn't know what Ash had been doing during this time that they had left Nox and X-Ray alone together in the Wreck Room.

"Squid asked me to play pool with him," Ash stated casually.

Mace nodded, "Okay. But still, they weren't alone. Were they? I mean, we were all in the same room…"

"A room which was full of people," Ash quickly intercepted.

"Exactly," Mace agreed. "But when we headed over to the Mess Hall for dinner… Nox wasn't in the room."

"No, I saw her come out of the tent as we entered the Mess Hall," Ash related the fact.

"But X-Ray was in the room with the rest of D-Tent?" Mace questioned, not positively sure if this information was correct.

"Yeah, he was," Ash nodded in assurance. "I didn't pay much attention to it at the time but now I do remember that it wasn't long after I started playing pool with Squid that I saw X-Ray with Armpit on one of the couches."

"Okay… so, it must have happened between the time we left them alone and when you saw him with Armpit," Mace stated her thoughts out loud.

"But Nox would never have that sort of conversation inside a crowded building…" Ash pointed out.

"Maybe they went outside during the conversation," Mace offered. "That would explain why Nox ended up in the tent and X-Ray back in the Wreck Room."

Ash nodded, "It sounds about right."

"Hey guys," Nox greeted them casually as she entered through the tent flaps and walked over to her bed.

"Nox!" Both girls exclaimed in surprise.

"We didn't here you come in," Mace stated, trying to act normal.

"That's because you two were obviously too caught up in your little huddle over there," Nox commented, looking at her two friends skeptically. "What were you guys talking about?"

"Nothing," they both said at the same time in the same unbelievable tone.

"Uh huh," Nox muttered, continuing to watch her friends as she took a sip of water from her canteen. "You two are usually good at lying, especially _you_, Mace. So, spill. You guys were obviously talking about me," she stated as she lied down on her cot and looked up at the ceiling.

*

I knew something was going on between them. My girls only failed at lying when they were lying to me and the topic of me was concerned.

I waited and finally heard both girls sigh, admitting defeat.

"Okay, fine," Mace gave in. "Today, when we left you alone with X-Ray in the Wreck Room, did you tell him that you weren't interested in him?"

I smirked at her blunt honesty. "Yes, I did," I answered.

Ash let out a deep, frustrated sigh, "But why?"

"I told you why," I stated angrily, sitting up straight and looking at the two of them. "I don't want to put anyone in danger here, okay? Not either of you, not the D-Tent boys, not anyone! Why is it so hard for you to understand that I _can't_ be interested in him?"

"Because it's so ridiculously obvious that you _are_ interested! And so is he!" Mace argued.

"That is not the point," I quickly defended myself. "The point is to keep everyone safe from harm."

"Honestly, Nox, there is _no_ harm!" Ash yelled. "There is no one watching you out there! Trust me! Seriously, there is way too must dirt in the air here for anyone to be able to see anything and not be seen by us. And to actually see us, they would have to risk being seen. And honestly, even if they could see, I don't think anyone is out there!"

"But what if there's an insider?" I argued, determined to win this fight.

"What?" Ash asked, perplexed and frustrated. "_Who?_ If there was an insider, wouldn't you recognize them considering how deep you say you are in the whole gang stuff?"

"That doesn't mean that they couldn't hire someone I don't know!" I pointed out the obvious.

"Like who?" Mace asked. "Mr. Sir? Mr. Pendanski? One of these juvenile delinquents?"

"Anyone could be working undercover for them," I stated clearly, trying to sound rational. "And there's still the fact that none of us have seen the Warden yet. What about him? He could have been given orders to watch over me!"

"Actually, it's a she," Ash stated innocently.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"The Warden," she said. "Squid told me she was a woman."

"Get out!" Mace exclaimed, shocked. "The Warden's a chick?"

Ash nodded, "And not just any chick. He's says she's the biggest bitch he's ever met and that the best thing you can do for yourself here is _not_ to piss her off."

Well, that's interesting news.

"Seems like Pendanski forgot to inform us of _a lot_," I stated, bewildered at this new piece of information.

And then I laid back down on my bed violently as I reminded myself of the cold water Pendanski hadn't informed us about, which led to my conversation with X-Ray after the cold shower. I slapped my forehead angrily; I needed to stop thinking about him.

"You know you're only going to regret telling him you don't like him," Mace stated condescendingly.

"Shut up!" I yelled angrily. "I've never regretted anything in my life."

"Liar," Ash called me out. "We all know you're not the sociopath that shrink thought you were."

"Well, the nurses seemed to believe it," I pointed out, annoyed that she wouldn't even let me try to be what those doctors and nurses believed I was just because I didn't want to regret something.

"Well, duh!" Ash established. "Everyone knows that the nurses don't know shit. The only people who can actually tell if a person is really crazy or not are the other mental patients themselves; they know a sane person when they see one admit themselves into a crazy house. But the nurses just believe what the doctors say; they don't bother to see if the shrink is right or wrong."

I just rolled my eyes, knowing perfectly well that she was right.

***

**Ending Announcement:** Any thoughts? I'd love to hear them. And reviews are the best way to deliver them. I, personally, like this chapter a lot. But then again, I like all the chapters I've written so far where X and Nox get all up close and personal with each other.

Heh, I love this story. You thought Shade and Squid were bad? Not when you compare them to Nox and X-Ray! Although, I think it must be more fun and frustrating at the same time to watch these two in action because it's made known very early on that they like each other and Nox is in complete denial to everyone but herself and then there's the whole sexual tension between them because of all this pent up anger toward each other. It's going to be good. Or at least I hope it will be.

Quick update: I am halfway through writing Chapter Nine. I'd also like to know if you lovely readers would be interested in a chapter written completely from the perspectives of X-Ray and one or two other boys? 'Cause, that's what Chapter Nine is going to be, when we get there. Of course, this means it's already halfway written so it's not like you have a choice. Or maybe you do. As far as I know, it's basically the perspective of the boys involved in some upcoming scenes where the G-Tent Girls are involved. So, you could probably skip it if you wanted to, but I don't know why you would. If I could get into other people's heads every now and then, I certainly would. But then again, that's just me.

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	7. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

**Cool Rider**

The next morning was worse than the first. I hadn't slept well during the night and when I woke up and first tried to get out of bed, my body screamed in protest.

I was in so much pain; every single muscle and bone in my body hurt, which was weird because digging hadn't even fazed me yesterday.

I suppose I was losing my edge. I mean, sure, the Ward would make us stay in shape, but all we really did was run a mile around the courtyard two times a week. That was nothing compared to the workout I used to have back home.

I guess I should have seen this coming though. It's been six months since I had a _real_ workout and now I was paying the price for it.

Slowly, I pulled on my jumpsuit and boots and then I tied my hair up into a messy bun and adorned my pink headband.

Ash and Mace were both doing the same, putting their hair up because it was just going to get in the way out at the digging site, not to mention it only caused our necks to sweat even more than usual.

Mace was quickly French-braiding her hair into two pig tails while Ash just pulled hers back into a low ponytail.

I grabbed my canteen and headed out to Library, which was the little shed in which they kept the shovels locked up at night. Pendanski was handing out tortillas again and I quickly took one for myself. Sadly, I was willing to eat anything now. I didn't care anymore. It was food and if it could cure my nonstop hunger for even an hour, than it was good enough for me.

I got in line for a shovel and glanced around to see Mace and Ash now at the breakfast stand while the D-Tent boys were all in line ahead of me.

I spotted X-Ray looking just as miserable as he did yesterday at dinner, but then quickly looked away.

Obviously, I had hurt him somehow; took a hit to his pride even after promising I would never do so again. But this was different. I wasn't doing it on purpose. I didn't _want_ to hurt him. But I had to, in order to keep him from being harmed by anyone else.

Once everyone had a shovel, Mr. Sir led us out to the digging site; driving past us in the water truck. We all trudged along behind him, some of us still half asleep.

*

As the morning wore on, none of us talked much. X-Ray was apparently still being his silent self which is what kept the D-Tent boys quiet. Ash and Mace stayed quiet as well, but only because they were concentrating on digging their holes faster than they did yesterday.

Eventually Mr. Sir returned to fill our canteens for the second time and hand out our lunches.

Mace, Ash, and I lined up as before, behind Zero at the end of the line, and patiently waited for the line to move.

Finally, our canteens were filled and we were sitting around my hole, eating our lunch in silence as it seemed to be the new trend around here.

"Maybe you should talk to him," Mace finally spoke up, quietly. I looked up to see her giving me her concerned look again.

"When we parted yesterday he said we were cool," I quickly defended myself. "It's not my fault he didn't mean what he said."

"Oh, come on, Nox," Ash piped in. "Give him a break. He likes you and he knows you like him back, but you turned him down. It's completely normal that he'd be upset."

"He doesn't _know_ that I like him back," I scoffed, annoyed that they were sticking up for him and not me.

"So, you do like him," Ash grinned, taking my words literally.

"_No_," I countered. "That's not what I meant."

"Well, it's not like it isn't obvious," Mace pointed out, harshly.

"Okay, you guys are _my_ friends; you're supposed to be on _my_ side, not his!" I argued, taking a sip from my juice box.

"We're not on anyone's side, Nox. We just want you to be happy," Mace countered.

"Well, I'm happy knowing that he won't get hurt because of me," I stated, matter-of-factly.

"I still think you're wrong," Mace declared, firmly. "I still don't think there's anyone out there, or even in here, keeping an eye on you."

"Yeah, well, think what you want," I spoke defiantly. "But I won't take that chance."

Quickly, I took the last bite of sandwich and jumped back into my hole.

It was time to get back to digging.

"And what about us?" Ash asked, suddenly. She and Mace refused to take a hint and go back to their own holes.

"What do you mean?" I asked, pausing as I stuck my shovel back into the dirt.

"Well, they could hurt us, too, and you still talk to us," she stated.

Thinking about that, I knew she was right. I could be putting them in danger every time I spoke to them. Even though I hadn't actually told them anything important, it was still obvious to anyone who paid attention that we were close.

"That's different though," I tried to argue. "We're just friends."

"So?" Ash countered. "We could still be suspected of knowing information we shouldn't."

"Not necessarily," I continued to argue. "We've been roommates for six months; it's only natural that we would become friends. But for me to get close to someone _romantically_, now that's a completely different ball game."

She stared down at me, hiding the confusion she must have had to figure through until she finally understood what I meant. Finally, she nodded once and walked away.

I didn't know if she believed me or not, but I figured she wasn't going to argue about it anymore today.

After watching her return to her hole, and looking to Mace who was already back in hers, I quickly resumed my digging.

*

A little over an hour later…

"Nox!" Ash called out.

"What?" I yelled back, through the dust.

"I'm bored!"

Clearly our talk from earlier had been forgotten or, at least, it had been pushed to the back of her mind, for now anyway.

"And you expect me to fix that how?" I asked, confused. I was just as bored as she was, but I knew I had to keep digging if I wanted to get done before the sun reached its highest point in the sky.

"I think you should sing for us," she finally declared after lifting herself out of her hole and coming over to me. She quickly brushed herself off and I noticed her dirt-splattered jumpsuit and how her face and hair were also covered in dirt.

I cringed at the thought of knowing I must look just as bad.

"Oh no, I am _not_ singing here," I quickly disagreed.

"Why not?" She whined.

"Because they'll be watching," I argued.

"Oh, come on! You sing in front of everyone else; since when do you let a couple of boys stop you from having fun?" Ash stomped her foot at me as she stood at the edge of my hole above me.

"I'm not singing," I declared as I continued to dig.

"Oh, yes you are," Ash countered.

"No, I'm not."

"Hey, Mace, you thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" Ash called out just as Mace was getting out of her own hole to come over.

"You mean Nox's favorite song from her favorite movie?" Mace grinned slyly.

"Nox says she's not gonna do it," Ash told her, whining childishly.

"Oh, yes she is," Mace contradicted, looking down at me.

"Did you bring your iPod?" Ash asked her.

"Even better," Mace answered, turning to Ash. "I brought my mini speakers, too. Thank God for large pockets," and then she pulled out her iPod and her battery-operated mini speakers and hooked the two up together on the ground.

"You two set this up," I said out loud, realizing that they had to have planned this.

Now Mace was fiddling with the iPod, probably looking for the particular song they wanted to hear.

I loved this song. It was my favorite song from my favorite 80's movie.

"Here we go!" Mace shouted, obviously excited.

I glowered at her.

"I hate you guys," I muttered.

"No, you don't!" Ash argued.

"I'm pretty sure I do," I contradicted her.

"Get ready!" Mace shouted, smiling like a five-year-old.

I quickly climbed out of my hole to stand face-to-face with them.

"_How about a hamburger later?"_ Ash started.

Ugh, these girls never gave up. I just shook my head and decided to play along. If I just went along with it now they would leave me alone once it was over.

"_Oh, I'm busy,_" I replied with a shrug.

"_How about tomorrow?_" She tried again after a moment.

"_Busy,"_ I answered, with a just a hint of displeasure.

"_So, maybe you can explain about the bowling alley, eh? I mean, you just don't kiss a guy--"_

"_Look, the kiss was just a joke. Forget it," _I quickly cut her off and then pretended to drop something (it was a book in the movie) and stooped down to retrieve it.

"_Let me give you a hand,"_ She continued, bending down quickly to pick it up for me.

"_Oh, I can manage—look, I said I could manage,"_ now I was starting to sound annoyed as I stood up straight.

"_I think he's in love," _Mace piped in from the sidelines. "_I think he's kind of cute."_ Since Ash was playing the role of Michael, Mace played both Rhonda and Paulette.

"_I think you two should shut your yaps," _I told her harshly, walking away from them both.

"_You forgot this one,"_ Ash quickly stopped me, holding out her empty hand.

I quickly turned around and walked back to take the nonexistent book Stephanie had left behind in the movie.

"Thanks."

And just as I took the invisible book away from her, she tried again, "_How about the day after tomorrow?"_

I sighed loudly and then began to walk away again.

But she stopped me, again, just like she was supposed to by calling desperately, "_Stephanie!_"

I turned around quickly once last time, exasperation clearly displayed across my face.

"_Look, when are you gonna get the picture_?" I questioned, annoyed; knowing every line in the entire movie by heart.

They both stepped back and waited for me to begin the show.

Once the music started, I gave them a fierce little pose with my shovel and started singing.

"_If you really want to know  
What I want in a guy...  
Well, I'm lookin' for a dream on a mean machine  
With hell in his eyes."_

I shoved them aside and walked through the space between them, toward the boys and then turned back around to face them with the same wild look in my eyes that Michelle Pfeiffer had in Grease 2.

_  
"I want a devil in skintight leather,  
And he's gonna be wild as the wind.  
And one fine night, I'll be holdin' on tight..._

_To a coooool rider, a coooool rider.  
If he's cool enough,  
He can burn me through and through.  
Whoa ohhhh  
If it takes forever,  
Then I'll wait forever.  
No ordinary boy,  
No ordinary boy is gonna do.  
I want a rider that's cool."_

I was singing my heart out for these girls and I was sure that the boys were quite shocked. Slowly, they gathered together nearby and were just staring at me in awe. I quickly went over to them just to get in their faces, making eye contact with each and every one of them as I went by.

_"That's the way it's gonna be,"_

First I passed Zigzag.

_  
"That's the way that I feel."_

Then Magnet.

_  
"I want a whole lot more than the boy next door,"_

Squid.

_  
"I want hell on wheels."_

I stopped in front of X-Ray just to gloat. Oh, yes, I was that cruel.

_  
"Just give me a fine motorcycle,  
With a man growin' out of the seat.  
And move aside, 'cause I'm gonna ride..."_

I continued to sing as I passed the rest of them unceremoniously and started dancing the same moves as Michelle Pfeiffer had, minus the ladder.

"_With a coooool rider, a coooool rider.  
If he's cool enough,  
He can burn me through and through.  
Whoa ohhhh  
If it takes forever,  
Then I'll wait forever.  
No ordinary boy,  
No ordinary boy is gonna do.  
I want a rider that's cool."_

Now I was really getting into the dancing, untying the sleeves around my waist and putting my arms into the sleeves just as Stephanie had in the movie, popping my collar and everything before returning to the dancing.

"_I don't want no ordinary guys,  
Comin' on strong with me.  
They don't know what I'm lookin' for,  
They don't know what I need.  
They're gonna know when he gets here,  
Cause the crowd'll be shakin'.  
I'll do anything to let him know,  
That I'm his, his for the takin'."_

Quickly I went back to my girls, who sang the last bit of the song with me as we danced together.

_"I want a coooooool rider,  
A cool, cool, cool, cool rider.  
I want a coooooool rider,  
A cool, cool, cool, cool rider.  
I want a C-O-O-L R-I-D-E-R.  
I need a C-O-O-L R-I-D-E-R."_

By the time the music stopped the three of us were all laughing so hard we had to hold onto our ribs because they hurt so bad.

"Wow, we didn't know you could sing like that, chica," Magnet spoke out first, cutting through our giggles as he stepped forward.

Finally calming down, I shrugged the comment off, "No one really does. When you're aspiring to be a drug lord people don't really assume, 'hey, maybe she can sing!'"

He nodded, appearing to understand what I meant.

"Okay, well, show's over boys! Time to get back to digging!" I announced happily as I headed back to my hole. "Oh, and Ash?" I stopped abruptly and turned around to meet my friend's gaze as she looked back at me expectantly.

"Yeah?" She asked, casually, as I took my time removing the top part of my jumpsuit and retying the sleeves around my waist.

"Tomorrow," I spoke, seriously and dramatically. "You're next."

She grinned and gripped her shovel tightly in both hands. "Of course!" She exclaimed, just as much of a drama queen as I was. "I wouldn't miss it for the world!"

*

Today, I finished at about the same time as X-Ray.

I didn't want to have to walk back to camp with him so I walked as fast as I possibly could without turning it into a jog.

He still hadn't said anything. I didn't even hear him comment on the song I sang with the other boys, who had just been so excited they couldn't help but grin at us occasionally and talk about the performance with their digging neighbors.

I looked behind me to see him easily keeping up with my fast pace; I was surprised to see he was only a few strides away from me.

Immediately, I began to walk even faster.

I don't know why I felt the need to escape him; I doubted he'd even speak to me anyway. I mean, he hadn't spoken to me since we went our separate ways yesterday so why would he talk to me now?

Finally, I made it to my tent and quickly pulled out my toiletries and a towel, preparing to take a shower while hoping it would help wash away this nagging notion I couldn't get rid of. X-Ray wasn't going to bother me. I was just being paranoid; worried that my singing may have affected him more than he let on.

I knew I shouldn't have gotten up in his face like that when I was singing. I don't even know _why_ I did it. I just had the sudden urge to be the one smirking at him and not the other way around for once.

He was always acting like he knew me, but he didn't know anything! He didn't know anything at all!

Frustrated, I made it to the showers without being confronted by the object of my rage.

Unfortunately, I had to shower quickly in order to thoroughly rinse out the conditioner and still be able to wash my entire body.

I was starting to get used to the cold water, but I just wished I had enough time in the shower to think about everything going on in my life. Shower time used to be the only time in which I could wash away all of my emotions and think about everything rationally.

When the water finally shut off after five minutes, I took my time drying off and putting on my clean clothes. I put on a white tank top and my relaxation jumpsuit and the hideous boots. I was actually surprised at how comfortable the boots had turned out to be, the only problem with them was that they were about one size too big for me.

Quickly, I made my way back to G-Tent, put my things away, and began combing through my long hair.

"So… I guess now I know why you turned me down," I suddenly heard someone speak up from behind me. It was the same voice I've been dreading to hear all day.

I turned around immediately to see X-Ray standing just inside the opening of the tent.

I was surprised that I hadn't heard him come in.

He was fresh from the showers, but, thankfully, this time he wasn't in just a towel. His puffy black hair was still a little wet from the shower, his glasses were clean, and he was wearing his usual black wife beater with his jumpsuit tied around his waist.

Finally, his words registered in my brain but I didn't know what exactly he was talking about.

"Excuse me?" I asked him, feeling confused as I waited for him to clarify.

He looked down at the floor and then walked a few steps closer to me until he was only two feet away, then he stopped and looked up to meet my gaze as he spoke. "That song you sang earlier," he started.

"What about it?" I asked, still not getting it.

"It explains why you don't want me," he stated matter-of-factly. "You'd rather have some badass with a motorcycle and you don't think that I could be that guy."

Okay, now I was completely lost.

"It was just a song, X; nothing more, nothing less. It doesn't mean anything," I argued.

"Don't play me, girl."

He sounded angry, frustrated, and upset. And his eyes only gave off the same impression. I really _had_ hurt him somehow.

"I'm not playing you," I said, defiantly.

"Stop trying to lie to my face!" He almost shouted as he stepped closer.

I was terrified that he would try to do something, but I think he saw the fear in my eyes because a moment later he sighed and grudgingly took a step back.

"Look, I get it. You don't think I could be that guy. You don't think I could be a _cool_ rider. Hell, you probably don't even think I'd look good in skintight leather…"

Was this guy for real? Was he really this upset over a stupid song!?

I just shook my head at him, "I never said that."

"That doesn't mean you weren't thinking it, earlier today when you thought it'd be fun to mock me in the middle of your song. Admit it; you think I'm just another ordinary guy who won't amount to anything."

"No, I don't," I spoke, taking a step forward so that I could better hold his gaze. "I don't doubt that you could be a cool rider. If you put your mind to it I think you could be anything you want to be. That song is just that, a song; one that's about this high school girl who is sick of all the boys she knows and wants something different, something cool and wild. It's just a fantasy!"

"A fantasy you approve of," he quickly cut me off.

"I never said that either. I like the song, yes; it's one of my favorites _but_ that doesn't mean it's about _me!_"

"So, if not _cool riders_, then what? What _are_ you into?" He stepped even closer. "Or do you just like all-around badasses no matter what it is they do?"

Oh God, he was way too close again. I wish he wouldn't do that.

"What I like," I started, jabbing him in the chest with my pointer finger, "are guys who just like being themselves instead of trying to impress a girl by trying to be someone else." My voice was a little higher-pitched than usual, probably because my nerves were a complete wreck right now.

"I can be that guy," he said, slowing coming closer until he had his muscled arms wrapped around my waist.

***

**Ending Announcement:** Yes, I did just pull a cliffhanger on you guys, basically because the chapter got too long. I'll try to get the next one up in a timely fashion since I bet you all are just dying to know what happens next.

And in case I did not make it clear enough in the chapter, all the italic lines and the "Cool Rider" song Nox sings are from the movie Grease 2.

And I must say that I am quite amazed at how well this story is doing so far. Yesterday, it was pretty even with _Shade_ in the number of hits and visitors in the last week and currently had 20 more visitors, but I know that is just because I've been updating this story a lot faster than _Shade._ I really should stop working on this one all the time and get back on track with my other story, considering in the past couple weeks I have practically caught up to Shade chapters-wise. I am currently in the middle of Chapter Thirteen for _Shade_, and just finished Chapter Ten of this story yesterday. But unlike this story, I haven't bothered to keep pace with my posting, I just write a chapter, edit it, and post it. I don't write a chapter, post an earlier one, and then edit it later right before posting because I finished a later chapter.

Thanks for reading and _please_ remember to leave some reviews!!!

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	8. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

**Murderer**

Oh no. Oh shit. Now he was crossing the line and if he tried to do what I think he's going to do… I don't know if I'll be able to push him away.

I wasn't used to guys crossing the boundaries after I've told them 'no.'

And if I didn't push him away, he was going to know that I lied.

He was now slowly leaning closer, headed for a kiss and my brain was in complete panic.

Where were Mace and Ash when I actually needed them? If only they were here to turn an intense moment into a completely awkward one, like they did yesterday.

But they probably weren't coming for another half an hour or so.

Looks like I'm going to have to make this moment an awkward one all by myself…

He was just about to kiss me when I finally spoke up, "Uhm… what are you doing?" I sounded nervous and uncomfortable and surprised, which is exactly how I felt.

He quickly pulled away to give me a hard glare, "What?"

I could see a hint of confusion in his expression.

"Just because I told you what kind of guy I preferred doesn't mean you suddenly have the right to touch me," I scolded him as I quickly removed his hands from my waist.

"Oh right, because no matter what, I'll still never be good enough for you," he spat angrily.

"No, you're just _too_ good for me," I said quietly, and sadly, as I pushed him back a step or two.

"And what makes you think that?" He looked at me, both curious and confused.

"Because you're better off without me," I answered honestly, meeting his gaze head-on.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He asked, completely befuddled now.

"Exactly what you think it means. I'm no good for you. When you get out of here, you have a chance to start over. You're record will probably be cleared by the time you're twenty-one. But I don't have a choice; I'm going back to the same place I came from."

I doubt this was really making any sense to him, but it's not like I could give away any actual details.

"What? Back to the Ward?" He questioned, puzzled.

"No, back to the gang life," I corrected him.

"But you do have a choice," he tried to argue.

"No," I quickly cut him off. "I don't. They'll be there when I get back. They'll be waiting for me. And they aren't just going to let me walk away."

"Or you could just not show up," he suggested.

"Are you crazy!?" I half yelled, shocked that he'd even mention such a thing. "That's an even stupider idea than thinking I have a choice!" I could not believe how dumb he was being right now. "If I were to run away then they'd hunt me down and kill me for sure!"

"You're scared, aren't you?" He suddenly asked, completely out of the blue.

"What?" Did he really just ask me that? "You know, I really don't understand you at all," I said, turning away from him to walk over to my bed and sit down.

"What is it that you don't understand?" He asked, inquisitively, coming over to the bed as well and sitting down next to me. I was thankful that he didn't sit _too_ close though. There was no way I could take another one of his attempts to kiss me right now.

"I don't understand why you keep making all these assumptions about me like you know me," I stated angrily. "We just met two days ago and, honestly, _you_ don't know anything."

I couldn't look at him. I just stared straight in front of me, not really focusing on anything in particular.

"So, I was right; you are scared," he stated solemnly. Looking out of the corner of my eye, I knew he was watching me and nothing else.

"See!" I yelled. "Where do you get this from?" I asked, finally turning to face him. I was so bewildered beyond comparison.

"You're not that hard to read," he answered calmly. "You're face doesn't hide anything."

"How can my face not hide anything!?" I yelled, standing up so that I could glare down at him. "I was trained to hide _everything_! Every little emotion! I'm not supposed to _have_ emotions! I'm supposed to be a cold-hearted felon!"

He had stood up as I shouted so that he could be the one looking down on me.

Jerk.

He sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "I hate to break it to you, Nox, but you might be losing your touch."

I slapped him.

Across the face.

It was total impulse, I swear.

My mouth gaped open in shock as he winced and turned back to glare at me.

I quickly backed away, my hands rushing to my mouth in surprise at how easily I had lost control.

I had mentally told myself this morning that I was obviously not as good as I used to be, but for some reason I couldn't take hearing it from someone else… especially not _him_.

"Shit! I'm so sorry!" I finally managed to say.

"Guess I hit a nerve," he stated, surprisingly calm. "Guess that means that everything I've assumed really is true…"

I stared at him, stunned at his nerve to defy me.

"So then, I guess that means you know what I'm going to do next, huh? Since I'm so predictable?" I chided him.

"You're going to tell me that I'm right and beg me to forgive you for hitting me?" He asked expectantly.

The _nerve_ of him!

I scoffed, "Hell no! I'm going to tell you to get the fuck out of my tent, that's what I'm going to do! Now get out!"

I was furious with this boy now. I wanted him out of my sight. I never wanted to speak to him again. I just wanted him to leave me alone for good.

He didn't move. He stared at me, giving me his own angry and confused look.

"_Out!_" I yelled, annoyed that he was still here.

Finally, he turned away from me and exited the tent.

I quickly sat back down on my bed, slouching with my face in my hands. I tried my best to hold back the angry tears that were just waiting to fall.

Five minutes later, I looked up just as Mace and Ash walked into the tent.

Immediately my two best friends saw the look on my face and the moisture on my cheeks and realized that something wasn't right.

"Nox, what's wrong?" Mace asked the moment she laid eyes on me.

They both quickly came over to stand next to me and find out why I was crying.

"Where were you guys?" I yelled, my mind no longer its usual rational self anymore.

"We were digging," Ash answered cautiously, hearing the anger in my voice.

"Well then learn to dig faster!" I said coldly. "I don't know why it is that you had to interrupt X-Ray and me yesterday when I could have handled myself, but when I needed you today to break us up before a fight ensued, you were nowhere to be found!"

I quickly jumped off my bed and ran outside. I didn't care where I went to. I just needed to get the hell away from here before I lost it completely.

I ran into oblivion, headed toward the mountains, and didn't look back.

And I didn't plan on coming back until I stopped crying and finally had my head on straight.

Twenty minutes later, I stopped, realizing I had gone a pretty long way in such a short amount of time. I was so far away from camp I almost couldn't see it anymore.

Out of breath, I sat down on the ground without bothering to look at my surroundings. I already knew the last hole I had past was a while ago. Apparently, the Warden felt no need to dig any closer to the mountains than she already had. And honestly, those mountains were still pretty far away.

My heavy breathing having finally calmed, I knew that I had been totally unreasonable for yelling at Mace and Ash. It wasn't their fault X-Ray and I went from talking, to _almost_ kissing, to having a full-blown argument where I got so angry that I actually slapped him.

I sighed to myself, still feeling pretty depressed about the whole thing.

If there was one thing X-Ray had gotten right it was the fact that I was scared of going back to the gang. Not because they would hurt me, but because if I was forced to continue being an active member in the gang, I could get caught again. And I would be old enough for real jail….

Just the thought of it terrified me.

I mean, it had never bothered me before. But before I had gotten caught, I was so full of myself that I never believed that I _could_ get caught. But now that I have, I can't even imagine what I would do if I were trialed as an adult and given a sentence of five years or more in a real prison.

I sighed again and stood up. Slowly, I began walking back to camp. I needed to get back there before dinner time or else I would have to go throughout the night hungry, and I didn't like to go hungry.

*

Just as I had arrived back at camp, I saw Squid come out of the Wreck Room. He spotted me immediately and quickly ran over to me.

"Where have you been?" He asked, sounding worried.

"Out there," I pointed in the direction of the mountains.

"Ash and Mace have been freaking out ever since you ran off," he chided me, obviously upset with the fact that I had scared my friends by running away.

"I wouldn't doubt it," I replied nonchalantly.

"So, why did you run off?" He questioned as he walked with me back to G-Tent where I assumed my girls still were.

"I really don't want to talk about it," I said and he nodded, understanding.

But he still had a few things to say to me.

"Did you and X-Ray have another fight?" He asked, looking at me curiously.

"What makes you think we had a fight?" I counteracted.

"Because after he left your tent, he came stomping into ours, muttering to himself and cursing your name."

"Ah," I nodded. "Well, in that case, I guess it's alright to tell you that yes, we had another fight."

"He likes you a lot, you know," he stated quietly.

"How do you know that?" I asked, suspiciously.

"Do you think he'd keep trying if he didn't?" He responded sarcastically.

"I don't think he'll keep trying after today," I stated matter-of-factly.

"I don't believe that," he replied, knowingly. "I know X-Ray better than anyone else here and he's not someone who gives up until he gets what he wants."

"And why are you telling me this?" I asked, suddenly. "What does any of this have to do with you?"

"He's my friend and he really likes you, Nox. And I don't know you that well, but I think you'd be good for him. You two just seem like you'd be perfect for each other." He shrugged, not knowing how to explain his intuition.

"Uh huh, well I'm pretty sure X-Ray and I aren't a couple that would work out even if it were possible for me to be with him."

"Why can't you be with him?" He asked, confused.

"Because that would be putting his life in danger," I spoke coldly.

"Oh."

Well, at least I didn't have to explain anything to him. He seemed to get the gist right off the bat.

Quickly, I walked up the steps to my tent with my Squid in tow behind me.

Mace and Ash looked up the moment I came in and both stood up and ran over to me.

"Nox!" Ash yelled, reaching me first and hugging me fiercely. "You came back!"

"Well, I wasn't running away from this place if that's what you were thinking," I chided her, smiling. "I just, you know, needed to be alone for a little bit."

'Well, you scared the shit out of us," Mace scolded me as Ash pulled away and Mace hugged me next. When she finally pulled away and took a step back she continued, "We probably would have gone to the Warden if Squid wasn't here to keep us from freaking out _too much_."

I nodded, "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to scare you; I was just really upset and not thinking rationally at all. And I'm sorry I yelled at you before running off. It's not your fault X-Ray can't take a hint and leave me alone."

They both nodded.

"We forgive you, Nox," Ash said.

"Yeah," Mace agreed. "As long you don't do it again."

I laughed and nodded, "I won't, I promise."

*

At dinner, I knew I wasn't safe sitting next to X-Ray like I usually did. Instead, I was going to have to beg Zigzag for his seat and hope he took pity on me.

"Hey, Zigzag?" I called ahead of me questionably, just before we all walked into the Mess Hall.

He turned around quickly, "Yeah?"

Squid, who had been walking with him, turned around, too.

"I was wondering if could ask a favor of you," I started, anxiously. I was worried that he would say no.

"What kind of favor?" He asked suspiciously.

"The kind where we change it up with our seats so that I can sit in your usual seat and far away from X-Ray…"

He still looked at me suspiciously, but also thoughtfully. Finally, Squid nudged him, "Come on, man, she's not out to get you. Just say yes already."

Zigzag looked at his friend curiously and then finally nodded and turned back to me, "Sure, I guess we can do that."

I smiled happily, "Thanks, Zigzag!" Then looked to Squid, "And thanks for sticking up for me, Squid."

Squid nodded and grinned.

"So, how are we going to sit if not in our usual places?" Zigzag asked, getting right down to business.

I shrugged, "It doesn't really matter; I just need to be on the far end from X."

He nodded, understanding, "I'll go catch up with Mace and Ash and let them know what's up."

And before I could even thank him again, he had cut in front of a bunch of guys in search of my girls, who were already in the building.

When Squid and I finally got to the table, I saw that Zigzag was in my usual place, Next to X-Ray. Mace and Ash sat in their usual seats, so it looked like Zigzag and I would just be switching places. I would sit at the end and Squid would sit in his usual spot next to Ash.

I quickly sat down in my new spot across from Caveman and Zero, who both looked at me in surprise as I smiled and greeted the two of them with a simple "hi."

"Hi?" Caveman responded, his confusion making it seem more like a question. "Why are you sitting here today? I thought you usually sat next to—"

"No reason," I lied, cutting him off before he could say _his_ name. "Just needed a change of scenery."

I knew I probably wasn't making any sense to this boy, but he nodded anyway, probably just pretending that he understood.

I looked to the smaller boy next to him who was no longer paying attention to me but staring at his plate while he continued to eat.

"So, why does he only talk to you?" I asked, impulsively, looking back to Caveman curiously. I know I was probably being rude by asking such a question, in front of the person I was asking about, but I couldn't help myself.

Caveman just looked over at Zero and shrugged, "I don't know."

"Well, what was the first thing he said to you?" I asked, hoping that might give him a clue as to what triggered this kid's desire to talk to him.

I saw Zero look up when I asked that, but it was only for a second before he went back to eating, but I was pretty sure his eyes had widened in surprise as he glared at me…

"Well, when I was telling the boys about how I stole Sweetfeet's shoes, Zero just randomly perked up and asked if they had red X's on them…"

"And did they have red X's on them?" I asked, even more curious now.

He nodded, "Yeah, they did."

"And how would he know that?" I asked, still curious but a little confused.

Cavemen shrugged, "It's a popular brand; all the best players where them. I don't see why Zero wouldn't have heard of them…"

Zero looked up at me again as Caveman spoke, this time more curiously. I wondered if there was something he knew about the shoes Caveman stole. Maybe there was something he knew that he wouldn't even tell Caveman?

"So, how did you steal the shoes?" I asked, curiously; wanting to know more.

Caveman quickly went into an explanation about how he stole the shoes, "Well, you see, Clyde Livingston had donated his shoes to this orphanage, the same orphanage he grew up in, and they were to be auctioned off to help raise money for the kids living there."

"You stole from orphans!?" I half-yelled, surprised.

This kid didn't even look like a thief let alone a thief heartless enough to steal from orphans! There was definitely more to the story than he was telling me.

"Yo, Nox," I suddenly heard X call my name.

I quickly turned to face him.

"Could you maybe talk a little more quietly? And are you really going to tell off poor Caveman for stealing from orphans when you've done worse?"

"_Excuse me?_" I said, sternly. I've had enough of this jerk for one day; I don't need any more from him.

But something weird happened when I said 'excuse me,' everyone in hearing distance turned to stare at me in horror the moment those two words came out of my mouth…

"Don't say that," Squid whispered to me.

"Don't say what?" I whispered back.

"Don't say what you just said," he responded determinedly.

"You mean, 'excuse me?'" I asked, curiously.

"Stop saying that!" He hissed.

"Why?"

"Just don't," he said with finality, apparently the conversation was supposed to end there.

I looked at him, next to me, with confusion, but then quickly returned to glaring at X-Ray.

"What are you glaring at me for?" X asked, as if he were the innocent one here. "You go yelling at Caveman for trying to make some money even if it means stealing from orphans. What right do you have to reprimand him when you've done even worse?" Then he paused for dramatic effect before adding, "_Murderer_."

My eyes widened in shock when he called me that. I could not believe the nerve of him.

How dare he?

Slowly, I stood up from the table. "You know, X, you might want to check yourself before you start calling people names," I spoke, dangerously.

"And why's that?" He asked, apparently not affected.

"Because, like you said, I am a murderer… I've killed twice already. What's to stop me from doing it again?"

Then I quickly took my tray and dumped my uneaten mush in the trash before making my exit and heading back to G-Tent.

Hopefully, he'll remember that threat before he bothers me again.

***

**Ending Announcement**: Ooohhh, X-Ray better watch his back. Haha! I like this chapter… well, I like most of it anyway. And there still hasn't been an escape from all the sexual tension building up; it must be up there with Nox's anger though. I'm still not sure exactly when I should begin to abate that need a little. I guess you all will have to wait and see. I LOVE REVIEWS, so you should write some. I'd appreciate it if I could get up to 50 sometime very soon.

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	9. Chapter Nine

**Beginning Announcement:** So, here's the chapter you've all been waiting for, the one with the boys' POV. It's only two of the boys though and I don't tell you when the POV switches because, well, I really don't feel the need to considering I do separate them and it's all in third person, so it's not that hard to figure out. Anyway, please enjoy!

**Chapter Nine**

**Not the Best Lackey**

"_That crazy bitch!"_ X-Ray hissed as he stormed into D-Tent.

Squid was in the tent alone, just back from digging, and he looked up at his leader in surprise as he came in but X-Ray just ignored him.

_I can't believe she slapped me!_

_Who does she think she is!?_

_Or better yet, how could I be so stupid to fall for someone who so obviously wants me but is so stubborn that she refuses to accept it?_

"What was I thinking?" he muttered to himself quietly, sitting down on his bed.

He wanted to punch something, or someone.

"I wish she had never come here," he continued to mumble, not caring if Squid thought he was insane for talking to himself. _If he knows what's good for him, he'll keep his mouth shut_, he thought.

_Then again, if he does say anything... at least I'll have found my punching bag._

It's all her fault he was so angry. He had never once lost his cool before she had come here… but now that she was here it was like he had no control over himself. X-Ray was surprised he didn't hit her back, considering how angry she had made him.

_But could I have hit her?_

_I've never hit a girl before._

"Screw Nox; that girl's messing with my brain."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Squid quickly exit from the tent with a towel in hand. But he was only going to take a shower. He would be back soon.

_Maybe it's just because I haven't seen a girl in a whole year, besides the Warden, but she doesn't count._

_But it can't be just that. I haven't had any problems with Mace or Ash. Then again, I'm not into Mace or Ash. Not that they aren't attractive, they are both pretty hot in their own way, but it's just not the same._

_They aren't _her_._

He had never met anyone like her before. Everyone he ever knew has always known better than to get in his face, but this girl just had no limits. She wasn't afraid of him; that was obvious. _Hell, I think she even seems comfortable around me, unless I'm hitting on her; that's the only time when I can really get a glimpse of fear in her eyes._

That was, until today.

Today he had obviously hit some nerves.

She was afraid of returning to her gang.

And apparently the reason she wouldn't do anything with him was because she was 'no good' for him.

_What was she playing at? Holding up the innocent card and telling me it wasn't me, but her. How stupid does she think I am? How do I know all this gang stuff isn't just a bunch of bullshit to let me down easily?_

_Then again, she must feel something for me…_

_Right?_

_She didn't push me away immediately when I tried to kiss her. She took a couple of seconds to finally do it. She could be telling the truth._

_But how do I know if she's lying or not?_

_I could talk to Mace and Ash…_

_No, they'd probably tell her that I asked about her._

_Maybe I could get one of the other boys to talk to her…_

_But who?_

_So far, she mainly talks to Squid and Zigzag, and Magnet was talking to them, too, the other day._

_Squid would probably be the best choice._

_Knowing Zigzag, he would probably think I was a spy for the CIA or an alien if I asked him to talk to her._

_And I don't trust Magnet well enough to keep his mouth shut about me being the one to ask him to talk to her._

_I know Armpit wouldn't be a good idea; even though he would do it, he would most likely raise some suspicions on her part since he's second-in-command after me._

_And Caveman wasn't cut out for this kind of thing, not to mention the fact that ever since he found out Nox was a murderer, he's been a little afraid of her._

"You okay, X?"

X-Ray was brought out of his trance as he heard someone say his name. X looked up to see Squid standing before him, back from his shower.

Suddenly a grin spread across X's face as the plan came into form.

Squid was on speaking terms with all of the girls. Nox apparently trusted him enough to ask him about X-Ray after that first night when he had gotten mad at her. Not to mention, being a good friend to Nox would raise his chances with impressing Ash. He didn't know if Squid knew it yet, but it was pretty obvious to him that he was crushing on the blonde girl.

"Hey man, I need you to do me favor…"

*

_I cannot believe I am doing this_, Squid thought to himself as he left his tent and walked toward G-Tent.

He could not believe he let X-Ray talk him into this.

_She's not stupid; she's going to figure it out if I just randomly start questioning her about X-Ray._

Swiftly, he made his way into the girls' tent, but when he got there the girl he was looking for wasn't anywhere in sight. Instead, he found Ash and Mace sitting on Nox's bed. Ash was crying into her hands while Mace hovered beside her, rubbing her back comfortably.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, feeling stupid as they noticed him.

"It's Nox," Mace answered, abruptly. "She ran off."

"Ran off?" He asked. Now he was the one who was worried. "Ran off _where?_"

"Look around, there's plenty of miles to run in every direction," Mace chided, obviously upset but, unlike her friend, she refused to cry. Everything would be figured out once Nox came back.

"Is she coming back?" He asked, feeling hopeless.

_Oh shit, how am I going to find out what she thinks about X-Ray now?_

_Or even worse, how is X-Ray going to respond when he finds out she ran away?_

"Of course, she's coming back!" Mace shouted, annoyed, motioning her head in the direction of Ash next to her as if signaling him to stop asking stupid questions that will only upset the blond girl even more.

Quickly, Squid realized his mistake and rushed over to sit on Ash's other side. "Hey," he started in a quiet voice. "There's no reason to cry, Ash. Mace is right, Nox'll be back."

Ash stopped her sobs for a moment to look up at the boy next to her in surprise. No one had ever spoken so kindly to her before. Not even Liam was this kind when she was upset about something. Every time Liam caught onto her sadness or anger over something, he would just tell her not to do anything _rash, _like he expected that was the first thing she would do.

"How do you know?" She asked curiously, trying to hold back another sob.

"Because she's a smart girl," he told her, honestly. "She knows there's no chance of surviving if she actually tried to escape." Another sob ensued; obviously that excuse wasn't helping to soothe her. "Besides," he added, "Nox would never just leave you and Mace behind; you're her best friends."

"Yeah, best friends," Mace scoffed. "Friends she won't tell anything to."

"Because she believes it's for our own good," Ash corrected, wiping away her tears.

Mace sneered, "I'd rather know what I'm getting myself into."

"That's your opinion though," Ash said defensively. "If Nox thinks she's keeping us safe by keeping us in the dark than maybe we should trust her and stop asking questions."

"Whatever," Mace stated, crossing her arms.

Squid was feeling out of place in the middle of this argument. He knew he should probably change the subject.

"So, why exactly did Nox run off?" He asked hesitantly, afraid that he might set the blond girl off again.

Mace and Ash looked at each other knowingly and then turned to face Squid. "We think her and X-Ray got into a serious fight…" Mace started.

"We don't really know what happened," Ash added. "But when we came in she was crying and when we asked her what was wrong she just turned on us and started shouting about how we should have been there to break them up before it got nasty."

Squid nodded even though he wasn't sure why she would blame them for her fight with X-Ray.

_So, X-Ray comes in seriously pissed off, cursing Nox and muttering to himself and she gets overly emotional and irrational, crying her eyes out and runs off._

_But what right do I have to tell him that he made her cry. Unless I told him off for upsetting her, it really wouldn't feel right to just outwardly tell him that he seriously hurt her feelings. Especially since X-Ray could be a real jerk sometimes…_

_This just seems too personal to share…_

*

Later on, after leaving the girls to themselves in their tent, Squid quickly made his way over to the Wreck Room in search of X-Ray.

But, no surprise to him, X-Ray found him first.

"Hey, Squid, did you find out anything?" X-Ray asked the moment he approached his third-in-command.

"Maybe," Squid answered cryptically.

"Well, tell me what you learned," X-Ray said, encouraging him to go on.

Squid just shook his head, "I don't think I should."

"And why not?" X-Ray asked, becoming frustrated. He had been so sure that this would work and Squid would tell him what he found out about Nox.

"Because I don't share personal information with people like you," he answered coldly.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Now, X-Ray was getting angry.

"You hurt her feelings, X. You seriously upset her. And in doing so, you upset her friends as well."

"So? What does that have to do with anything? I asked you to find out some information, not to become all buddy-buddy with them!"

"Well, then you asked the wrong person because I'm not telling you anything," he replied in Nox's defense, feeling very proud of himself for doing the right thing for once and standing up to X as he walked away.

X-Ray just looked after him as he did so, not really sure what to say. No one had ever stood up to him before (besides Nox). Not to mention, this was _Squid_ he was talking about! Squid had always supported him and looked up to him and did what he told him to do no matter what!

_Figures,_ X-Ray thought, _just when I realize I can use his help he has to go all soft and noble on me._

_Damn it! Now how am I going to find anything out about this girl!? If I ask anyone else to do it, Squid will surely catch on and stop them while also informing Nox of my plan._

*

After telling X-Ray off, Squid headed over to one of the couches and sat down next to Zigzag.

He didn't talk to his friend though. Zigzag was intently watching the television and knew it was best not to bother the crazy-haired boy while he watched his "shows."

After a while, he got bored and decided to go back outside.

Quickly, getting up from the couch, he headed over to the exit and stood on the porch, looking around, wondering where Nox had run off too.

And just as he was pondering this, he spotted her a mere twenty feet away. He hurried over to her, hoping she was okay now that she was back.

"Where have you been?" He asked, concerned.

"Out there," she pointed out to the mountains in the distance, her answer vague.

He observed her carefully. It was obvious that she had been crying; her eyes were puffy and bloodshot while tearstains streaked her cheeks. She also appeared tired and beaten down, nothing like the vibrant girl she had been earlier today when she was singing; so energetic and full of life it was almost painful to see the same girl now so down and out.

"Ash and Mace have been freaking out ever since you ran off," he told her and then mentally cursed himself for sounding so reprimanding.

_Stop being a dick, you idiot. If you keep making it sound like you're blaming her for everything she's not going to want to confide in you._

"I wouldn't doubt it," was all that she said in response, as if she didn't even care.

_Did she care?_ He wondered. He had assumed she did, considering the fact that even if she didn't agree with her friends, she could never stay mad at them. To him she had always come off as someone who would do anything for her friends; one of those real loyal types.

"So, why did you run off?" He asked, curiously; knowing he probably shouldn't be pushing her for information in case it made her suddenly shut him out, but he just couldn't stop himself.

"I really don't want to talk about it," she stated, dejectedly.

He nodded, trying to be understanding about her refusal to tell him anything. She didn't know him all that well anyway, so he knew not to take it personally.

"Did you and X-Ray have another fight?" He continued with his questioning, hoping that maybe a little prying would get her talking.

"What makes you think we had a fight?" She replied, defensively.

_So, she's not going to admit it. Maybe she just doesn't want to admit it right now because that would require thinking about it._

"Because after he left your tent, he came stomping into ours, muttering to himself and cursing your name," he told her, in all honesty. He was hoping that honesty was the key to getting her to let something slip.

"Ah," she started, nodding. "Well, in that case, I guess it's alright to tell you that, yes, we had another fight."

"He likes you a lot, you know," he told her, quietly.

He didn't know why it was so easy to tell this girl about X-Ray when he couldn't tell X-Ray about her. He figured that X-Ray had just pushed his buttons for the last time and this girl didn't deserve the kind of treatment she was getting from the D-Tent leader.

"How do you know that?" She asked, sounding suspicious.

He shrugged, "Do you think he'd keep trying if he didn't?"

She shook her head knowingly, "I don't think he'll keep trying after today."

"I don't believe that," he stated. "I know X-Ray better than anyone else here and he's not someone who gives up until he gets what he wants."

"And why are you telling me this?" She asked; confusion etched across her facial features. "What does any of this have to do with you?"

_He asked me to befriend you in order to find out how you feel about him._ That was what he wanted to say, but instead he defended his so-called friend, "He's my friend and he really likes you, Nox. And I don't know you that well, but I think you'd be good for him." This was true. "You two just seem like you'd be perfect for each other." He shrugged off his honesty, not knowing how he would explain what he knew if she asked.

"Uh huh," she brushed off his words. "Well, I'm pretty sure X-Ray and I aren't a couple that would work out even if it were possible for me to be with him."

_If it were possible for her to be with him? Was it not allowed for her to be with him?_ He was surprised he had gotten such an interesting piece of information out of her.

"Why can't you be with him?" He asked; feeling confused.

"Because that would be putting his life in danger," she spoke, sounding angry yet uncaring at the same time.

"Oh," was all he said. _Must have something to do with the gang she was in. They must not allow their members to have relationships with outsiders. It seems like a perfectly logical excuse; I don't know why he has to be so angry with her when she's just trying to save his life. He should be thankful considering she could probably have him killed if she wanted._

Squid quickly followed Nox up the stairs into her tent, only to watch her be bombarded by her two friends, who quickly ran over to tackle her into a hug.

"Nox!" Ash yelled, gleefully. "You came back!"

Squid was so glad to hear the happiness in the blond girl's tone. He didn't like seeing her upset.

"Well, I wasn't running away from this place, if that's what you were thinking," she told them, beginning to sound a little happier now that she was with them again. "I just, you know, needed to be alone for a little bit."

"Well, you scared the shit out of us," Mace scolded her just before pulling her into a hug as well. "We probably would have gone to the Warden if Squid wasn't here to keep us from freaking out _too much_."

"I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to scare you; I was just really upset and not thinking rationally at all. And I'm sorry I yelled at you before running off. It's not your fault X-Ray can't take a hint and leave me alone."

He watched as both girls nodded in response to this.

"We forgive you, Nox," Ash said.

"Yeah," Mace agreed. "As long as you don't do it again."

Nox laughed and nodded vigorously, "I won't, I promise."

_I was right, she really does care about them… and vice versa._ He smiled at the three girls before him. _They seem like such unlikely friends, yet that doesn't stop them from being there for each other._

Then again, they weren't much different from him and his own tent mates. The only difference being they were guys and guys didn't get all emotional like girls did, but that didn't mean that they didn't stick up for one another when it was necessary. Just like Squid had defended X-Ray to Nox, even though he knew his leader was being a jerk.

***

**Ending Announcement:** So, what did everyone think? I figured since Squid is so problematic in _Shade_ that I'd make him more of a good guy in this fic. I hope you liked it! And please remember to REVIEW!

xoxo.

InAnotherLife11


	10. Chapter Ten

**Beginning Announcement:** Hey, guys! Sorry it's been forever since I last posted. I finally got my files from my old computer and can now start writing again where I left off. I currently have one more chapter finished from way before my computer crashed and as soon as I can I will start working on Chapter Twelve. I am just posting this chapter to let you know that I _am_ finally back and will be working on my stories again once I am done with this week (aka Finals Week). Oh, and just to let you know, I have reread and edited all the other past chapters of this story if you care to go back and reread them to refresh your memory. Mainly just a lot of word changes and sentence structure fixing. Some whole sentences added here and there as I try to make this story better and better. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter. Once I get around to writing and finishing Chapter Twelve, Chapter Eleven will be posted. I love you all and please remember to review when you're finished reading!

**Chapter Ten**

**Frustrated and Challenged**

X-Ray was not happy when dinner rolled around and he found out that Zigzag had decided to switch places with Nox.

X-Ray had gotten there first with Armpit. Magnet, Caveman, and Zero appeared next. Mace and Ash soon followed over, taking their usual seats like the rest. But the routine was quickly ruined the moment Zigzag came over and, instead of taking his usual seat at the end of the table, he sat down right next to X-Ray.

Moments later, Squid and Nox appeared and sat down at the end of the table; Squid in his usual seat while Nox took Zigzag's seat as if nothing had changed, by the casual look on her face, you'd think that's where she always sat.

_So, now she doesn't even want to sit next to me!?_

_Technically, she didn't want to sit next to you in the first place_, he suddenly remembered the girls' first day here. It was obvious from the look on her face that when Mace took the middle seat, she was not happy about having to sit next to X-Ray instead. _But she had never said anything about it…_

_I guess she figured that if she didn't sit near me, she wouldn't have to talk to me._

_Well, I'm not going to just let it go…_

X-Ray watched as she sat down and greeted the two boys across from her, Caveman and Zero. This struck X-Ray as odd considering she had never spoken to the two before now.

"Hi?" Caveman greeted her, but it was obvious to X-Ray that he was just as surprised. "Why are you sitting here today? I thought you usually sat next to—"

"No reason," she quickly cut him off before he could say X-Ray's name. "Just needed a change of scenery."

_Well, she certainly lies easily, without an ounce of hesitance._

X-Ray watched as the object of his desire and utter frustration continued to observe the boys across from her, looking closely at Zero and then Caveman.

"So, why does he only talk to you?" She questioned, sounding curious. X-Ray was surprised to see that instead of addressing Zero, she addressed Caveman.

_Well, why wouldn't she address Caveman? It's not like Zero would answer her question himself._

Caveman shrugged as he also looked to Zero, "I don't know."

"Well, what was the first thing he said to you?" She asked, not willing to just stop there, apparently.

_Why does she care anyway?_

"Well, when I was telling the boys about how I stole Sweetfeet's shoes, Zero just randomly perked up and asked if they had red X's on them…" Caveman answered, automatically.

"And did they have red X's on them?"

Caveman nodded, "Yeah, they did."

"And how would he know that?" She continued her interrogation.

_How did he know that?_ X-Ray wondered curiously. _When it had actually taken place, no one ever even bothered to ask how Zero knew that. We were all too busy being shocked by Zero actually talking…_

Caveman just shrugged though; apparently he wasn't as perturbed by this question as X-Ray or Nox. "It's a popular brand; all the best players where them. I don't see why Zero wouldn't have heard of them…"

_He had a point there…_

"So, how did you steal the shoes?"

_She never stopped, did she?_

"Well, you see, Clyde Livingston had donated his shoes to this orphanage, the same orphanage he grew up in, and they were to be auctioned off to help raise the money for the kids living there."

"You stole from orphans!?" She yelled out, appearing shocked.

X-Ray didn't like the fact that she was paying so much attention to Caveman and Zero. He quickly decided that it was time to put an end to this conversation…

"Yo, Nox," he called to her and she quickly turned to face him.

"Could you maybe talk a little more quietly?" He chided her for shouting at the dinner table. "And are you really going to tell off poor Caveman for stealing from orphans when you've done worse?"

"_Excuse me?"_ I said, harshly.

Everyone around them suddenly flinched and turned to her in horror the moment those two words spilled out of her mouth.

X-Ray watched as Squid quickly whispered something to her.

"Don't say what?" She asked, looking confused.

"Don't say what you just said," he responded, louder now.

"You mean, 'excuse me?'"

"Stop saying that!" Squid hissed, annoyed.

"Why?"

"Just don't," he said seriously.

She looked at him for a moment, still confused, but she quickly returned her attention to X-Ray; glaring at him.

"What are you glaring at me for?" X-Ray asked. "You go yelling at Caveman for trying to make some money even if it means stealing from orphans. What right do you have to reprimand him when you've done worse? _Murderer_." He made sure to emphasize that last word accusingly.

X-Ray watched as her eyes widened in shock.

He could tell that he had really pissed her off this time.

"You know, X," she started. "You might want to check yourself before you start calling people names." Her voice and expression were both threatening but it didn't have an effect on him.

_What can she do? It's not like she's got any names to call me, _he thought, cheekily.

"And why's that?" He asked, smirking.

"Because, like you said, I am a murderer… I've killed twice already. What's to stop me from doing it again?"

_Well, shit._ He hadn't thought of that.

Then she quickly took her tray and dumped her uneaten food in the trash before exiting the Mess Hall.

_She wouldn't…_

_Would she?_

*

That _bastard!_

It was all I could think about as I lay on my back on my, staring up at the rafters.

What was _wrong _with him!?

You would think that by now he would have gotten the point; the point being to leave me alone.

But _no!_

He still felt the need to bother me every single time he was around.

Did he _enjoy_ pissing me off?

"_Probably,_" I muttered to myself, annoyed.

Why was it so hard for him to understand that I couldn't be with him and that it would be best for us to just stay away from each other? I was done believing we could just be friends; he obviously didn't want that and now I'm starting to think that he wouldn't be able to handle it anyway even if we did try to be friends.

He's too pressed on getting with me.

We could never just be 'cool' now. It was too late.

_Murderer_, the word flashed through my brain, making me angry all over again.

"Ugh, I just want to punch him in his fucking face!" I yelled, completely aggravated.

"Nox?" Mace called out my name; her and Ash just coming back from dinner. "Are you okay?"

"Do I _look_ okay?" I snapped back.

"Nox… please don't be like that with us. We're you're friends, remember? And we're on your side," Mace explained, pleading for me to stop being so cruel.

"_My_ side!? You two were the ones who were all '_I don't believe you, Nox.' 'There's nobody out there watching you, Nox.' 'You two would be perfect together, Nox.'_ Oh yeah, he's _so_ perfect for me, guys. He's so fucking charming it just knocks my socks off!" I spoke sarcastically.

"Okay, okay, we're sorry we kept ragging on you about him…" Mace trailed off, fidgeting with the sleeves of her jumpsuit tied around her waist.

"We just thought you two would be a great couple," Ash quickly piqued up. "We didn't know he'd be a complete jerk."

I grinned at that. It was obvious that Ash was no longer happy with the boy in question.

"Well, if you remember, he _is_ from the same cut as Bane, which is why I didn't want anything to do with him in the first place. He's just like Bane, a complete and total jerk who gets all bitchy when he can't get laid," I explained, annoyed with my horrible taste in guys.

"We're really sorry, Nox," Ash repeated. "We promise we'll listen to you from now on when it comes to guys…"

I smirked, sitting up, "Thanks, Ash. I'm glad you two have finally learned to see things my way."

They both nodded, looking like two little girls about to be punished.

I sighed knowingly, "Come here!"

They both grinned like four-year-olds and came running over to me, tackling me in a group hug.

*

"X?"

X-Ray lay on his bed, with a pillow over his head, trying to block out the world.

"X!" The person repeated, louder this time, while hitting his knee. "I know you're awake," the other boy said as he quickly pulled the pillow off his leader's face.

X-Ray growled, "What the fuck do you want?"

"I want you leave Nox alone from now on," the brown-eyed boy answered.

"Excuse me, but are _you_ the leader of this tent? _No!_ So who do you think you are telling _me_ what to do!?" X-Ray yelled, standing up and getting into his tent mate's face.

"I'm Squid," he said simply. "And if you don't leave her alone then I will challenge your leadership, and I will take it away from you if I have to."

"Pfft," X-Ray spoke, disbelievingly. "_You?_ Challenge _me?_"

Squid nodded.

"Boy, you might want to check yourself. If you challenge me, you will lose; and when you do, I will put you at the very end of the line."

"I'm not afraid of you," Squid stated matter-of-factly. "I've stood behind you for eight months without question because you've always been a fair leader, but ever since those girls got here all you ever do is stay to yourself and conspire on how to piss off Nox over and over again. Well, I've had enough of your bullshit and so has everyone else! You've been anything _but_ a good leader these past few days and we won't stand for it anymore. Either you leave Nox alone, or I _will_ challenge you and I _will_ beat you!"

X-Ray looked at his tent mate in shock. He had never heard Squid say so many words in all his time here, at least not in one sitting. Not to mention, he sounded dead serious and as he looked into Squid's determined brown eyes, X-Ray knew the boy wasn't joking.

If X didn't shape up and start being their leader again, Squid really would challenge him.

And X-Ray feared that he would win.

"Why do you care so much about Nox anyway?" X-Ray asked, defensively.

Squid didn't even falter, "She's a nice girl, X. She's not refusing you to spite you; she's refusing you to save your life."

"What?" X-Ray asked; surprised that Squid, of all people, knew what Nox had told him.

"She doesn't want to risk your life by being with you, X. Why can't you just accept that and move on?"

X thought about this, but he didn't have an answer.

_I don't want to move on,_ he thought to himself. _But if the only reason she keeps pushing me away is because she doesn't want me to get entangled in her gang life… maybe it would be best if I did just leave her alone._

"Fine. You win, Squid. I'll leave the poor girl alone from now on."

Squid nodded, "Good." And then he left X-Ray alone, to his own thoughts, in the tent.

*

Soon after we parted from our group hug, another set of footsteps came into the tent.

We all looked up to see Squid standing in the doorway. "Am I interrupting something?" He asked, watching each of us carefully.

I quickly shook my head, answering cheerfully, "No, of course not."

He nodded, "Can I talk to you, Nox? Privately?"

He sounded a little nervous.

I wasn't sure why he needed to talk to me in private, but I had no problem with giving him what he wanted after he helped calm down Mace and Ash when I ran off. "Sure," I agreed, nodding. "How about we go for a walk?"

"Okay," he complied and I followed him back out into the hot sun, leaving Mace and Ash in the tent.

"So, what's up?" I asked, curiously, once we were about twenty feet away from camp.

He stopped walking and stood facing me, he appeared to be thinking over the words he wanted to say.

Finally, he spoke, "I just wanted to let you know that you don't have to worry about X-Ray; he won't be bothering you anymore."

Now I was really curious, "How do you know that?"

"I told him not to," he answered, matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, but is he actually going to listen to you? You said so yourself, he doesn't stop until he gets what he wants," I said, repeating his own words.

"I know I said that, but that was before I threatened him," he spoke, both nervous and honest.

I stared at him, wide-eyed. "You threatened him?"

This was the boy who was constantly sticking up for his tent leader every time I got angry with him.

He just nodded, "I threatened that I would publicly challenge his leadership if he didn't leave you alone."

I nodded, thoughtfully. "And it worked?" I asked, still skeptical.

He nodded, "I reminded him of the leader he used to be, before you girls came here, and I told him that if he couldn't start being that leader again then I would challenge his leadership and I would win. Apparently I was intimidating enough for him to realize it was best to take me seriously and do as I say."

"Wow," I commented, surprised. "I don't know what to say to that… Thank you."

"You're welcome," he nodded.

"Would you really have challenged him?" I asked, curious.

"Yes," he replied, looking away from me. "When the words came out of my mouth, it surprised even me… but I meant every word I said. I've never been the noble one, Nox… but it felt really good to stick up for something I believed in."

I grinned at him, "Well, I'm glad."

We began walking back to camp.

"Tell me, Squid…" I started, thoughtfully.

"Hmm?"

"Are you truly being noble, or are you only doing this to get into my good graces, so that you'll have my approval when you finally get up the courage to tell Ash how you feel about her?"

"_What?_" He asked, shocked.

I chuckled, "You think I didn't notice?"

"I don't even really know how I feel about her! I mean, sure, I like her but I like you, too!"

"But are you attracted to me?" I asked, trying to help him figure out his feelings. It was obvious that it was Ash he was hanging around for. He sat next to her at dinner, he asked her to play pool, not to mention he got this cute little grin on his face every time she paid him any sort of attention…

"No!" He exclaimed. "I mean, no offense, it's not that you're not attractive, but I just don't see you like that…"

I grinned, nodding. "I knew what you meant, Squid. But how do you feel about Ash?"

He stayed quiet for a minute, looking ahead thoughtfully. "I'm attracted to her, yes. I can't help but smile every time I see her smile or laugh. But I don't know. I've never really cared about girls before, I was always too busy caring about myself."

I nodded, "She has a boyfriend, you know?"

He stopped, staring at me in shock; sadness in his eyes. "She does?"

I nodded, solemnly. "His name's Liam."

"Why are you telling me this?" He asked, dejectedly.

Immediately I put my hands on his shoulders, even though he was taller than me, and looked up into his sad brown eyes. "Because, Squid, one day soon, Liam is going write Ash a letter and that letter is going to say something along the lines of, 'I'm sorry, babe, but this just isn't going to work out for me. You're not around and I want to see other people.' And when she gets that letter, she's going to be heartbroken."

"What does this have to do with me?" He asked, sounding upset.

"I don't think Mace and I are going to be enough to soothe her broken heart, she's going to need someone else, someone like you, who cares about her enough to make sure she gets through this and comes out whole. I want _you_ to be that person, Squid." My voice was all seriousness. I was really starting to think he would probably be the only one to bring her out of her misery and remind her that she is a beautiful, smart, funny girl who doesn't deserve boys like Liam… just like I don't deserve boys like Bane.

Finally, he nodded, "Okay, Nox, I'll do my best."

I nodded, too, "I know you will."

And then we continued on our way back to camp. The sun was beginning to set and we only had a couple more hours before lights out.


End file.
